ACTH Assay
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Overview ACTH is a peptide hormone secreted by the pituitary gland. Regulates production of steroid hormones from adrenal cortex. Secreted in pulsatile manner. Little overlap between [ACTH] in dogs with PDH and ADH. Useful discriminatory test once diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism made. Uses In combination In combination with ACTH stimulation test Very high levels seen in hypoadrenocorticism Source of test material Standard venipuncture Quantity of test material 1 ml EDTA plasma required. Sample collection technique Collect sample into cooled PLASTIC EDTA tube. Mix gently and centrifuge as soon as possible. Transfer EDTA plasma to a cooled plastic tube. Quality control Precautions ACTH is extremely labile and sampling must be carried out with care. Sample storage Freeze plasma at less than -15°C immediately and store frozen. Sample transport Transport frozen in special transport pack (available from laboratory). Package according to mailing regulations Technique (intrinsic) limitations Some overlap in [ACTH] between normal and hyperadrenocorticoid dogs. Technician (extrinsic) limitations Lability of hormone necessitates care in handling sample. Normal (reference) values Most normal animals 5-100 pg/ml. Abnormal values <5.0 pg/ml with ADH. >100 pg/ml with PDH. >500 pg/ml with hypoadrenocorticism. Errors and Artifacts Poor storage of sampling may result in falsely low [ACTH]. [ACTH] elevated with stress. Publications Refereed papers Recent references from PubMed . Gould S M, Baines E A, Mannion P A, Evans H & Herrtage M E (2001) Use of endogenous ACTH concentration and adrenal ultrasonography to distinguish the cause of canine hyperadrenocorticism. JSAP 42 , 113-121 PubMed . Vetstream contributor(s) Dr David Bruyette DVM DipACVIM , VCA West Los Angeles, 1818 South Sepulveda Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90025, USA.Helen Evans BSc , CSL Bioscience Services Ltd, UK.
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CANIS LAB00345
ACTH binds to glass giving falsely low results.