Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Editorial
. 2023 Oct 12;14(10):1930.
doi: 10.3390/genes14101930.

Special Issue: "Canine Genetics 2"

Tosso Leeb  1
Affiliations
Editorial

Special Issue: "Canine Genetics 2"

Tosso Leeb. Genes (Basel). .

Abstract

Wolves were the first animal species to become domesticated by humans, approximately 30,000-50,000 years ago. Human-directed dog breeding over thousands of generations has generated more than 350 recognized breeds displaying surprisingly different phenotypes with respect to morphology, behavior and disease predispositions. The domestication of wolves and the subsequent breeding of dogs can be viewed as one of humankind's oldest and largest genetic experiments and provides us with unique opportunities for research. Dogs have not only become human's best friend but were also described as geneticists' best friend in a past issue of Science. In recognition of the importance of canine genetics, this Special Issue, entitled "Canine Genetics 2", was compiled. It represents a sequel to the former Special Issue "Canine Genetics", which was published in 2019. During the last 15 years, the canine community has heavily relied on a reference genome derived from the female Boxer Tasha. "Canine Genetics 2" includes an article describing a greatly improved version of this important community resource. This Special Issue further contains several reports related to monogenic or complex inherited diseases in dogs. Finally, important aspects of wild canid research, genetic diversity in different populations and canine morphology were investigated.

Keywords: Canis lupus familiaris; dog; genetic diversity; inherited disease; precision medicine; wild canids.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The author declares no conflict of interest.

References

    1. Shearin A.L., Ostrander E.A. Canine morphology: Hunting for genes and tracking mutations. PLoS Biol. 2010;8:e1000310. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1000310. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Karlsson E.K., Lindblad-Toh K. Leader of the pack: Gene mapping in dogs and other model organisms. Nat. Rev. Genet. 2008;9:713–725. doi: 10.1038/nrg2382. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Schoenebeck J.J., Ostrander E.A. Insights into morphology and disease from the dog genome project. Annu. Rev. Cell Dev. Biol. 2014;30:535–560. doi: 10.1146/annurev-cellbio-100913-012927. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Leeb T., Bannasch D., Schoenebeck J.J. Identification of genetic risk factors for monogenic and complex canine diseases. Annu. Rev. Anim. Biosci. 2023;11:183–205. doi: 10.1146/annurev-animal-050622-055534. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Lequarré A.S., Andersson L., André C., Fredholm M., Hitte C., Leeb T., Lohi H., Lindblad-Toh K., Georges M. LUPA: A European initiative taking advantage of the canine genome architecture for unravelling complex disorders in both human and dogs. Vet. J. 2011;189:155–159. doi: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2011.06.013. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types