Vancouver-based Wisdom Health Genetics published in Canine Medicine and Genetics a study conducted in collaboration with the University of Eastern Finland.
The study describes genetic subpopulation differentiation and related loss of genetic diversity discovered in six dog breeds: the Belgian Shepherd, English Greyhound, Finnish Lapphund, Italian Greyhound, Labrador Retriever and Shetland Sheepdog.
Researchers examined the six popular dog breeds based on differential breeding strategies — such as breeding for characteristics desired in ‘sporting’ compared to ‘show’ lines — and geography using genotype analysis, finding that each of the breeds showed subpopulation differentiation contributing to a lack of genetic diversity.
“These findings are yet another example of how the genetic data generated during our commercial testing at Wisdom Health Genetics can be used to gain insight into the population structure and diversity levels of breeds and their subpopulations,” said Jonas Donner, PhD, Discovery Manager at Wisdom Health Genetics.
