Articles

Selected canine abstracts from the Companion Animal Genetic Health conference 2018 (CAGH 2018): Canine Genetics and Epidemiology

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Meeting report from the Companion Animal Genetic Health conference 2018 (CAGH 2018): a healthy companionship: the genetics of health in dogs

Authors: Sally L. Ricketts and Thomas W. Marchant

Work-type influences perceived livestock herding success in Australian Working Kelpies

Working dog handlers and breeders have very different behavioural requirements in the animals that they employ for managing livestock. The Australian Working Kelpie breed may be used in several working context...

Authors: Jonathan B. Early, Elizabeth A. Arnott, Lisa J. Mascord, Diane van Rooy, Paul D. McGreevy and Claire M. Wade

Demography and disorders of the French Bulldog population under primary veterinary care in the UK in 2013

Despite its Gallic name, the French Bulldog is a breed of both British and French origin that was first recognised by The Kennel Club in 1906. The French Bulldog has demonstrated recent rapid rises in Kennel C...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Lauren Baral, David B. Church, Dave C. Brodbelt and Rowena M. A. Packer

Letter to the editor regarding an autosomal recessive mutation in SCL24A4 causing enamel hypoplasia in Samoyed and its relationship to breed-wide genetic diversity

Authors: Frank W. Nicholas, Cathryn Mellersh and Tom Lewis

Nationwide genetic testing towards eliminating Lafora disease from Miniature Wirehaired Dachshunds in the United Kingdom

Canine DNA-testing has become an important tool in purebred dog breeding and many breeders use genetic testing results when planning their breeding strategies. In addition, information obtained from testing of...

Authors: Saija Ahonen, Ian Seath, Clare Rusbridge, Susan Holt, Gill Key, Travis Wang, Peixiang Wang and Berge A. Minassian

Assessing the relative importance of health and conformation traits in the cavalier king Charles spaniel

The selection of a future breeding dog is a complicated task, in which disease characteristics and different traits have to be combined and weighed against one another. Truncation selection, that is the exclus...

Authors: Katrien Wijnrocx, Liesbeth François, Peter Goos, Nadine Buys and Steven Janssens

Moving from information and collaboration to action: report from the 3rd International Dog Health Workshop, Paris in April 2017

Breed-related health problems in dogs have received increased focus over the last decade. Responsibility for causing and/or solving these problems has been variously directed towards dog breeders and kennel cl...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Sylvia F. A. Keijser, Åke Hedhammar, Caroline Kisko, Gregoire Leroy, Aimée Llewellyn-Zaidi, Sofia Malm, Patricia N. Olson, Rowena M. A. Packer, Jean Francois Rousselot, Ian J. Seath, Jason W. Stull and Brenda N. Bonnett

Border Terriers under primary veterinary care in England: demography and disorders

The Border Terrier is a working terrier type that is generally considered to be a relatively healthy and hardy breed. This study aimed to characterise the demography and common disorders of Border Terriers rec...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Elisabeth C. Darwent, David B. Church and Dave C. Brodbelt

An autosomal recessive mutation in SCL24A4 causing enamel hypoplasia in Samoyed and its relationship to breed-wide genetic diversity

Pure breeding of dogs has led to over 700 heritable disorders, of which almost 300 are Mendelian in nature. Seventy percent of the characterized mutations have an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance, indic...

Authors: Niels C. Pedersen, Bonnie Shope and Hongwei Liu

Rottweilers under primary veterinary care in the UK: demography, mortality and disorders

Rottweilers are reportedly predisposed to many disorders but accurate prevalence information relating to the general population are lacking. This study aimed to describe demography, mortality and commonly reco...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Wee Yin Seah, David B. Church and Dave C. Brodbelt

Population characteristics of golden retriever lifetime study enrollees

Studying cancer and other diseases poses a problem due to their protracted and multifactorial nature. Prospective studies are useful to investigate chronic disease processes since collection of lifestyle infor...

Authors: Melissa Simpson, Erin Searfoss, Sharon Albright, Diane E. Brown, Barbara Wolfe, Nancy K. Clark, Susan E. McCann, David Haworth, Mike Guy and Rod Page

Lumbosacral stenosis in Labrador retriever military working dogs – an exomic exploratory study

Canine lumbosacral stenosis is defined as narrowing of the caudal lumbar and/or sacral vertebral canal. A risk factor for neurologic problems in many large sized breeds, lumbosacral stenosis can also cause ear...

Authors: Meenakshi Mukherjee, Jeryl C. Jones and Jianbo Yao

Single nucleotide polymorphisms and microsatellites in the canine glutathione S-transferase pi 1 (GSTP1) gene promoter

Genetic polymorphisms within the glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) gene affect the elimination of toxic xenobiotics by the GSTP1 enzyme. In dogs, exposure to environmental chemicals that may be GSTP1 substrate...

Authors: James Sacco, Sarah Mann and Keller Toral

Obituary: professor sir Patrick Bateson FRS and dog welfare

Authors: David Richard Sargan

Large-scale survey to estimate the prevalence of disorders for 192 Kennel Club registered breeds

Pedigree or purebred dogs are often stated to have high prevalence of disorders which are commonly assumed to be a consequence of inbreeding and selection for exaggerated features. However, few studies empiric...

Authors: B. M. Wiles, A. M. Llewellyn-Zaidi, K.M. Evans, D. G. O’Neill and T. W. Lewis

Demography and disorders of German Shepherd Dogs under primary veterinary care in the UK

The German Shepherd Dog (GSD) has been widely used for a variety of working roles. However, concerns for the health and welfare of the GSD have been widely aired and there is evidence that breed numbers are no...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Noel R. Coulson, David B. Church and Dave C. Brodbelt

Corneal ulcerative disease in dogs under primary veterinary care in England: epidemiology and clinical management

Corneal ulcerative disease (CUD) has the potential to adversely affect animal welfare by interfering with vision and causing pain. The study aimed to investigate for the first time the prevalence, breed-based ...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Monica M. Lee, Dave C. Brodbelt, David B. Church and Rick F. Sanchez

Correlation of neuter status and expression of heritable disorders

Gonadectomy, or neutering, is a very common surgery for dogs having many positive effects on behavior, health, and longevity. There are also certain risks associated with neutering including the development of...

Authors: Janelle M. Belanger, Thomas P. Bellumori, Danika L. Bannasch, Thomas R. Famula and Anita M. Oberbauer

Genetic mapping of principal components of canine pelvic morphology

Concentrated breeding effort to produce various body structures and behaviors of dogs to suit human demand has inadvertently produced unwanted traits and diseases that accompany the morphological and behaviora...

Authors: Mark J. Fealey, Joy Li, Rebel J. E. Todhunter, Ursula Krotscheck, Kei Hayashi, Marina J. McConkey, Adam R. Boyko, Jessica J. Hayward and Rory J. Todhunter

Osteosarcoma inheritance in two families of Scottish deerhounds

Osteosarcoma is the most common neoplastic disease in Scottish Deerhounds. For Deerhounds, a 2007 population-based study concluded that a single dominant genetic factor largely governed disease risk. For Greyh...

Authors: John E. Dillberger and Sara Ann McAtee

DNM1 mutation status, sex, and sterilization status of a cohort of Labrador retrievers with and without cranial cruciate ligament rupture

Exercise-induced collapse (EIC) due to DNM1 mutation and rupture of the cranial cruciate ligament are both common syndromes in the Labrador retriever breed. A cohort of 313 Labradors was recruited based on their ...

Authors: Kari J Ekenstedt, Katie M Minor, Aaron K Rendahl and Michael G Conzemius

Polymorphisms in the canine monoamine oxidase a (MAOA) gene: identification and variation among five broad dog breed groups

In humans, reduced activity of the enzyme monoamine oxidase type A (MAOA) due to genetic polymorphisms within the MAOA gene leads to increased brain neurotransmitter levels associated with aggression. In order to...

Authors: James Sacco, Andrew Ruplin, Paul Skonieczny and Michael Ohman

No evidence of prenatal diversifying selection at locus or supertype levels in the dog MHC class II loci

Despite decades of studying, the mechanisms maintaining high diversity in the genes of the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) are still puzzling scientists. In addition to pathogen recognition and other fu...

Authors: Alina K. Niskanen, Lorna J. Kennedy, Hannes Lohi, Jouni Aspi and Tanja Pyhäjärvi

DachsLife 2015: an investigation of lifestyle associations with the risk of intervertebral disc disease in Dachshunds

Intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) represents a major problem in the Dachshund, with at a relative risk of IVDD 10–12 times higher than other breeds, and an estimated 19–24 % of Dachshunds showing clinical sig...

Authors: R. M. A. Packer, I. J. Seath, D. G. O’Neill, S. De Decker and H. A. Volk

A genetic assessment of the English bulldog

This study examines genetic diversity among 102 registered English Bulldogs used for breeding based on maternal and paternal haplotypes, allele frequencies in 33 highly polymorphic short tandem repeat (STR) lo...

Authors: Niels C. Pedersen, Ashley S. Pooch and Hongwei Liu

A large deletion in RPGR causes XLPRA in Weimaraner dogs

Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) belongs to a group of inherited retinal disorders associated with gradual vision impairment due to degeneration of retinal photoreceptors in various dog breeds. PRA is highly ...

Authors: Regina Kropatsch, Denis A. Akkad, Matthias Frank, Carsten Rosenhagen, Janine Altmüller, Peter Nürnberg, Jörg T. Epplen and Gabriele Dekomien

Demography and health of Pugs under primary veterinary care in England

The Pug is an ancient dog breed and was the fifth most commonly registered UK pedigree breed in 2014. However, the breed has been reported to be predisposed to several disorders including ocular, respiratory a...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Elisabeth C. Darwent, David B. Church and Dave C. Brodbelt

The epidemiology of patellar luxation in dogs attending primary-care veterinary practices in England

Canine patellar luxation is one of the most common orthopaedic disorders of dogs and is a potential welfare concern because it can lead to lameness, osteoarthritis and pain. However, there are limited epidemio...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Richard L. Meeson, Adam Sheridan, David B. Church and Dave C. Brodbelt

Protein expression and genetic variability of canine Can f 1 in golden and Labrador retriever service dogs

Valued for trainability in diverse tasks, dogs are the primary service animal used to assist individuals with disabilities. Despite their utility, many people in need of service dogs are sensitive to the prima...

Authors: Christina Breitenbuecher, Janelle M. Belanger, Kerinne Levy, Paul Mundell, Valerie Fates, Liza Gershony, Thomas R. Famula and Anita M. Oberbauer

Trends in popularity of some morphological traits of purebred dogs in Australia

The morphology of dogs can provide information about their predisposition to some disorders. For example, larger breeds are predisposed to hip dysplasia and many neoplastic diseases. Therefore, longitudinal tr...

Authors: Kendy T. Teng, Paul D. McGreevy, Jenny-Ann L. M. L. Toribio and Navneet K. Dhand

Prevalence of pectinate ligament dysplasia and associations with age, sex and intraocular pressure in the Basset hound, Flatcoated retriever and Dandie Dinmont terrier

The aims of this study were to: determine the prevalence of pectinate ligament dysplasia (PLD) in populations of Basset hounds (BH), Flatcoated retrievers (FCR) and Dandie Dinmont terriers (DDT) resident in th...

Authors: James A. C. Oliver, Abel Ekiri and Cathryn S. Mellersh

A search for genetic diversity among Italian Greyhounds from Continental Europe and the USA and the effect of inbreeding on susceptibility to autoimmune disease

Previous studies documented the problem of inbreeding among Italian Greyhounds (IG) from the USA and its possible role in a multiple autoimmune disease syndrome. The present study is an extension of these earl...

Authors: Niels C. Pedersen, Hongwei Liu, Angela Leonard and Layle Griffioen

Evaluation of whole-genome sequencing of four Chinese crested dogs for variant detection using the ion proton system

Next generation sequencing (NGS) has traditionally been performed by large genome centers, but in recent years, the costs for whole-genome sequencing (WGS) have decreased substantially. With the introduction o...

Authors: Agnese Viluma, Shumaila Sayyab, Sofia Mikko, Göran Andersson and Tomas F. Bergström

Trends in genetic diversity for all Kennel Club registered pedigree dog breeds

Inbreeding is inevitable in closed populations with a finite number of ancestors and where there is selection. Therefore, management of the rate of inbreeding at sustainable levels is required to avoid the ass...

Authors: T. W. Lewis, B.M. Abhayaratne and S. C. Blott

A cultured approach to canine urothelial carcinoma: molecular characterization of five cell lines

Urothelial carcinoma (UC), also known as transitional cell carcinoma (TCC), of the bladder is the most common neoplasm affecting the canine urogenital system. To facilitate study of the disease in vitro, cell lin...

Authors: SG Shapiro, DW Knapp and Matthew Breen

The effect of genetic bottlenecks and inbreeding on the incidence of two major autoimmune diseases in standard poodles, sebaceous adenitis and Addison’s disease

Sebaceous adenitis (SA) and Addison’s disease (AD) increased rapidly in incidence among Standard Poodles after the mid-twentieth century. Previous attempts to identify specific genetic causes using genome wide...

Authors: Niels C. Pedersen, Lynn Brucker, Natalie Green Tessier, Hongwei Liu, Maria Cecilia T. Penedo, Shayne Hughes, Anita Oberbauer and Ben Sacks

Genetics and epidemiology of hypothyroidism and symmetrical onychomadesis in the Gordon setter and the English setter

Hypothyroidism is one of the most common endocrine disorders, whereas symmetrical onychomadesis is a rare claw disease in the general dog population. The aims of this study were to estimate the prevalence of h...

Authors: Martine Lund Ziener, Stina Dahlgren, Stein Istre Thoresen and Frode Lingaas

Prevalence and heritability of distichiasis in the English Cocker spaniel

Canine distichiasis is a well-known cause of ocular irritation and excessive lacrimation (secretion of tears) in the dog. The term distichiasis originates from the Greek words di and stichos meaning two and rows,...

Authors: Tanja Petersen, Helle Friis Proschowsky, Tommy Hardon, Søren Nyhuus Rasch and Merete Fredholm

Epidemiological associations between brachycephaly and upper respiratory tract disorders in dogs attending veterinary practices in England

Brachycephalic dog breeds are increasingly common. Canine brachycephaly has been associated with upper respiratory tract (URT) disorders but reliable prevalence data remain lacking. Using primary-care veterina...

Authors: Dan G. O’Neill, Caitlin Jackson, Jonathan H. Guy, David B. Church, Paul D. McGreevy, Peter C. Thomson and Dave C. Brodbelt

Ten inherited disorders in purebred dogs by functional breed groupings

Analysis of 88,635 dogs seen at the University of California, Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital from 1995 to 2010 identified ten inherited conditions having greater prevalence within the purebred dog ...

Authors: A. M. Oberbauer, J. M. Belanger, T. Bellumori, D. L. Bannasch and T. R. Famula

Analysis of DLA-DQB1 and polymorphisms in CTLA4 in Cocker spaniels affected with immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia

Cocker spaniels are predisposed to immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia (IMHA), suggesting that genetic factors influence disease susceptibility. Dog leukocyte antigen (DLA) class II genes encode major histocomp...

Authors: Anna J. Threlfall, Alisdair M. Boag, Francesca Soutter, Barbara Glanemann, Harriet M. Syme and Brian Catchpole

Identification of a novel frameshift mutation in the DMD gene as the cause of muscular dystrophy in a Norfolk terrier dog

A Norfolk terrier was referred to the Animal Health Trust neurology department with suspected dystrophin-deficient muscular dystrophy (DD-MD), which was confirmed by clinical workup and immunohistochemistry.

Authors: Christopher A Jenkins and Oliver P Forman

Strong selection for behavioural resilience in Australian stock working dogs identified by selective sweep analysis

Working dog handlers and breeders have strong opinions on characteristics that are desirable in the breeds that they use to handle stock. Most of these characteristics are related to conformation or behaviour....

Authors: Elizabeth R Arnott, Lincoln Peek, Jonathan B Early, Annie Y H Pan, Bianca Haase, Tracy Chew, Paul D McGreevy and Claire M Wade

Prevalence of disorders recorded in Cavalier King Charles Spaniels attending primary-care veterinary practices in England

Concerns have been raised over breed-related health issues in purebred dogs, but reliable prevalence estimates for disorders within specific breeds are sparse. Electronically stored patient health records from...

Authors: Jennifer F Summers, Dan G O’Neill, David B Church, Peter C Thomson, Paul D McGreevy and David C Brodbelt

Homozygosity mapping and sequencing identify two genes that might contribute to pointing behavior in hunting dogs

The domestic dog represents an important model for studying the genetics of behavior. In spite of technological advances in genomics and phenomics, the genetic basis of most specific canine behaviors is largel...

Authors: Denis A Akkad, Wanda M Gerding, Robin B Gasser and Jörg T Epplen

The challenges of pedigree dog health: approaches to combating inherited disease

The issue of inherited disorders and poor health in pedigree dogs has been widely discussed in recent years. With the advent of genome-wide sequencing technologies and the increasing development of new diagnos...

Authors: Lindsay L Farrell, Jeffrey J Schoenebeck, Pamela Wiener, Dylan N Clements and Kim M Summers

Development and validation of a diagnostic test for Ridge allele copy number in Rhodesian Ridgeback dogs

The breed-defining dorsal ridge in Rhodesian Ridgeback dogs is the result of a 133,000 base pair duplication on chromosome 18. Because this trait is dominant, heterozygous dogs cannot be discriminated from tho...

Authors: Jennifer Turner Waldo and Kasandra Santana Diaz

Prevalence and risk factors for mast cell tumours in dogs in England

Mast cell tumour (MCT) appears to be a frequent tumour type in dogs, though there is little published in relation to its frequency in dogs in the UK. The current study aimed to investigate prevalence and risk ...

Authors: Stephanie JW Shoop, Stephanie Marlow, David B Church, Kate English, Paul D McGreevy, Anneliese J Stell, Peter C Thomson, Dan G O’Neill and David C Brodbelt

Non-synonymous genetic variation in exonic regions of canine Toll-like receptors

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) considered to be the primary sensors of pathogens in innate immunity. Genetic variants could be associated to differences in breed innate imm...

Authors: Anna Cuscó, Armand Sánchez, Laura Altet, Lluís Ferrer and Olga Francino