Serum Protein Fractions in Cattle with Lumpy Skin Disease in Sokoto State, North West Nigeria

Lumpy skin disease has emerged as an economically significant viral infection of cattle in sub-Saharan Africa, imposing multi-systemic physiological burdens that warrant biochemical characterisation in Nigerian livestock. This study determined serum protein fractions, including total protein, albumin, and globulin, in cattle clinically diagnosed with lumpy skin disease in Sokoto State, North West Nigeria. Fifty Bunaji cattle comprising thirty confirmed cases and twenty clinically normal controls were recruited from herds under active veterinary surveillance. Serum protein fractionation was performed by cellulose acetate electrophoresis alongside direct colorimetric quantification of total protein and albumin at a veterinary diagnostic laboratory. Infected cattle showed significantly reduced albumin concentrations relative to controls, with a corresponding increase in globulin fractions, particularly the gamma-globulin band, reflecting heightened acute-phase and immune protein synthesis. Albumin-to-globulin ratios were markedly reversed in clinical cases. Body condition scores were negatively correlated with the degree of hypoalbuminaemia, suggesting that nutritional status modifies the severity of the protein biochemical response. The degree of gamma-globulinaemia was positively associated with skin lesion severity scores. These findings provide objective biochemical profiling of lumpy skin disease in Sokoto and have practical implications for supportive therapy and nutritional management of affected herds. Keywords: lumpy skin disease, serum proteins, albumin, globulin, Sokoto State.