Cardiac Troponin I in Pastured and Race-Training Thoroughbred Horses

Cardiac troponin I (cTnI), a myocardial polypeptide, is a highly sensitive and specific biomarker of myocardial injury in people and dogs. The structure of cTnI is highly conserved across species, and equine myocardium has high reactivity with human immunoassays. The purpose of this study was to describe cTnI concentrations in normal pastured and race-training Thoroughbred horses. Ten horses on pasture and 10 horses in race training were studied. Horses were considered normal on the basis of physical examination, training performance, electrocardiography (ECG), and echocardiography. Serum cTnI concentrations were determined with a colorimetric immunoassay. The assay has an analytical sensitivity of 0.04 ng/mL. Serum cTnI concentrations in race-training horses were not significantly different from those of pastured horses. When groups were combined, mean cTnI concentration (+/- SD) was 0.047 +/- 0.085 ng/mL. and the median was 0 (range, 0-0.35 ng/mL). The 90th percentile for both groups combined was 0.11 ng/mL. This study establishes a preliminary reference range for serum cTnI in normal Thoroughbred horses.