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Oculocutaneous albinism in a wild koala ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) with unusual renal impairment
Author(s) -
GonzalezAstudillo Viviana,
Palmieri Chiara,
Shaw Stephanie,
Allavena Rachel
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
veterinary record case reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.165
H-Index - 4
ISSN - 2052-6121
DOI - 10.1002/vrc2.42
Subject(s) - albinism , oculocutaneous albinism , glomerulopathy , phascolarctos cinereus , pathology , medicine , histopathology , glomerulonephritis , ectasia , kidney , biology , paleontology , population , environmental health
An albino koala with progressive weight loss was submitted twice to a wildlife clinic. Due to poor prognosis, the koala was euthanised. Relevant histopathology findings include a membranous glomerulopathy and renal ceroid lipofuscinosis. Transmission electron microscopy revealed thickening of the mesangial matrix and glomerular basement membrane and a few dense deposits suggestive of a chronic nephropathy. Albinism in koalas is rare, and this report describes general features of wildlife albinism as well as drawing a comparison to a well‐described amelanotic syndrome in humans that typically results in a severe glomerulopathy due to circulating or in situ immune complexes.