I'm reading "Genetic Screening in Dogs" by Matthew Binns, BSc (Hons), PhD
Dr. Binns is Professor of Genetics at the Royal Veterinary College, London. He took this position in Autumn, 2004, after 14 years working at the Animal Health Trust (AHT). His research focuses on genetic diseases in horses and dogs, with the aim of improving their health and welfare through the development of DNA-based screening tests. Dr. Binns has chaired the horse and dog gene mapping committees for the International Society for Animal Genetics and published more than 150 scientific papers
Quote:
Key Points are
~ The recent sequencing of the dog genome has accelerated the rate at which the mutations underlying genetic diseases in the dog are being identified
~ Increasing numbers of genetic screening tests are commercially available which can be used to selectively breed healthier dogs through the reduction and elimination of deleterious mutations
~ Genetic tools are now available that can be used to identify breed specific “fingerprints” for the majority of pure dog breeds. These same tools can be used to determine the breed composition of non-pure breed individuals, presenting opportunities to genetically characterize an enormous range of morphological, behavioral and disease traits
~ The scientific progress made in characterizing dog diseases at the molecular level has increased interest in their use as biomedical models for equivalent human conditions, and it is anticipated that future results from mapping genetic diseases in dogs will have both veterinary and human clinical importance
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