Dog Genome And Models For Human Disease

[sandgrubber]

http://dmm.biologists.org/content/3/1-2/27.full.pdf

ABSTRACT

Leading the way: canine models of genomics and

disease

Abigail L. Shearin1 and Elaine A. Ostrander1,*

PRIMER

In recent years Canis familiaris, the domestic dog, has drawn considerable attention

as a system in which to investigate the genetics of disease susceptibility,

morphology and behavior. Because dogs show remarkable intrabreed

homogeneity, coupled with striking interbreed heterogeneity, the dog offers

unique opportunities to understand the genetic underpinnings of natural variation

in mammals, a portion of which is disease susceptibility. In this review, we

highlight the unique features of the dog, such as population diversity and breed

structure, that make it particularly amenable to genetic studies. We highlight recent

advances in understanding the architecture of the dog genome, which propel the

system to the forefront of consideration when selecting a system for disease gene

studies. The most notable benefit of using the dog for genetic studies is that dogs

get many of the same diseases as humans, with a similar frequency, and the same

genetic factors are often involved. We discuss two approaches for localizing disease

genes in the dog and provide examples of ongoing studies.

[shortstep]

Thus, each dog breed represents a

closed breeding population of individuals

with high levels of phenotypic homogeneity.

Not surprisingly, there is reduced

genetic diversity within breeds and greater

genetic divergence between breeds. Indeed,

27% of the total genetic variance observed

in dogs is between breeds, compared with

the 5-10% that exists between distinct

human populations (Parker et al., 2004).

The strong selection that breeders have

imposed in order to produce a homogenous

population of individuals with common

morphological and behavioral traits has led

to an excess of inherited diseases in domestic

dogs. Although this is unfortunate for the

companion animal community, the fact that

many breeds display an excess of disease

offers a unique opportunity to identify genes

that have been difficult to localize through

the study of human families and populations,

with cancer providing an excellent

example (Cadieu and Ostrander, 2007).

Years ago a friend of mine in genetics said that pedigreed dogs were as good if not better then mice/rats populations specially inbred for genetic study.

Having all the different breeds each genetically unique from the other breeds but with each breed being well inbreed on it's self, made the perfect lab rats.

[Aidan3]

Dogs have a long history in genetic research, some of it very "interesting" -

http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/05/25/how-nazi-scientsts-tried-to-create-an-army-of-talking-dogs/