Fig. 1.
Anti-adherence effect of cranberry extract consumption on uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) adherence to cat urinary epithelial Crandell-Rees feline kidney (CRFK) cells. The effect is shown in micrographs of Giemsa-stained preparations in which feline UPEC strain C571 appears adhering to CRFK urinary epithelial cells after growth in urine samples. A – uninfected CRFK cells; B – UPEC adherence to CRFK cells after growth in urine sample U2 collected from cat 2 given the control diet; C – UPEC adherence to CRFK cells after growth in urine sample U2CR0.1 collected from cat 2 given cranberry powder at 0.1% in its diet; D – UPEC adherence to CRFK cells after growth in urine sample U2CR0.3 collected from cat 2 given cranberry powder at 0.3% in its diet
Table 1.
Mean indices of the C571 uropathogenic E. coli strain’s adherence to Crandell-Rees feline kidney uroepithelial cells
| Cat No./Sex | Urine samples | Mean | SD | P-value Student’s t-test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/male | U1 | 0.69 | 0.48 | |
| U1CR0.1 | 0.77 | 0.49 | 0.51◇(NS) | |
| U1CR0.3 | 0.59 | 0.59 | 0.011◇(S) 0.044◇◇(S) | |
| 2/female | U2 | 27.9 | 5.7 | |
| U2CR0.1 | 13.03 | 9.22 | 2.67 10−36◇(S) | |
| U2CR0.3 | 2.35 | 2.00 | 0.0002◇(S) 4.48 10−5◇◇◇(S) | |
| 3/female | U3 | 3.16 | 2.85 | |
| U3CR0.1 | 0.93 | 0.26 | 2.55 10−36◇(S) | |
| U3CR0.3 | 1.17 | 0.88 | 3.86 10−22◇(S) 0.21◇◇(NS) | |
| 4/female | U4 | Removed | ||
| U4CR0.1 | ||||
| U4CR0.3 | ||||
| 5/female | U5 | 1.43 | 1.00 | |
| U5CR0.1 | 1.16 | 0.50 | 0.18◇(NS) | |
| U5CR0.3 | 0.91 | 0.68 | 0.005◇(S) 0.07◇◇(NS) | |
| 6/female | U6 | 1.31 | 0.93 | |
| U6CR0.1 | 0.93 | 0.37 | 8.55 10−70(S) | |
| U6CR0.3 | 1.17 | 0.23 | 0.00 07◇(S) 0.08◇◇(NS) | |
1 The results are the means of four independent experiments. All six cats were neutered. U1 to U6 – samples of urine passed after the six cats had consumed the control diet; U1CR0.1 to U6CR0.1 – samples of urine passed after the six cats had consumed the control diet + cranberry powder at 0.1%; U1CR0.3 to U6CR0.3 – samples of urine passed after the six cats had consumed the control diet + cranberry powder at 0.3%. P-values < 0.05 were considered significant. S – significant (P-value ≥ 0.05); NS – not significant (P-value > 0.05); SD – standard deviation; ◇ – P-value vs. control diet; ◇◇ – P-value vs control diet + cranberry powder at 0.1%. Cat No. 4 was withdrawn following the diagnosis of an allergy