The gastrointestinal tract does more than digest food and absorb nutrients. It is the body’s largest immune organ and harbors an extensive microbial ecosystem. Here is a brief refresher on the intestinal immune system.

Normal immune and inflammatory responses are influenced by many factors, including aging and nutrition. Learn how specific nutrients can modify inflammatory and cell-mediated immune responses.

Learn how the relationship between the gastrointestinal tract and the kidneys, known as the gut-kidney axis, is relevant to a discussion of constipation and chronic kidney disease in cats.

Is feline idiopathic cystitis merely inflammation of the bladder urothelium? What is the etiology of the inflammation? Learn the answers to these questions and others, including how to help affected cats.

Expand your knowledge on how nutrition can be leveraged to modify inflammation and immunity.

An overview of maladaptive mitochondrial cholesterol handling and trafficking associated with ageing and age-related diseases such as canine mammary cancer. 

Speakers at the 2023 Companion Animal Nutrition Summit answer questions and discuss topics related to Immunosenescence: The Impact of Age on Immune Function. 

Microbiome-based therapies, which offer a range of health benefits, are attracting interest as a target for anti-immune ageing therapies. 

An introduction to the links between diet and immune function and the evidence for using diet in the prevention or management of health conditions. 

An overview of how age-related changes in the human immune system can add to the understanding of companion animal aging and immune function.

The impact of age-related changes on the thymus and immune function and the link between the aging thymus and longevity.

Speakers from the Mitochondria and the Metabolic Determinants of Aging and Longevity section of the  2023 Companion Animal Nutrition Summit answer questions related to their presentations.