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Clinical Applications of Genetic Testing
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Our understanding of genetics has advanced at a remarkable pace in the last few years, and as a result the options for genetic testing are increasing dramatically. Benefits are already starting to become apparent for the veterinarian, as Jamie Freyer and Angela Hughes describe in their overview of the current situation.
Jamie L. Freyer
DVM
Originally from Portland, Oregon, Dr. Freyer received her veterinary degree from Oregon State University in 2009. After working in small animal practice in the Portland area for five years, she transitioned to a role as a Technical Support Analyst for Wisdom HealthTM (formerly Mars Veterinary). Her interests include exotic animal medicine, animal behavior and genetics. She also enjoys working with her dogs and competing in canine sports, including agility, conformation, and herding.

Angela Hughes
DVM, PhD
Dr. Hughes completed her DVM, veterinary genetics residency, PhD in genetics, and held
an associate clinical professor position at the University of California, Davis. She currently serves as Veterinary Geneticist for Wisdom HealthTM where she developed Optimal SelectionTM, a new analysis to genetically align potential breeding dogs. She is also involved in several canine and feline genetic studies and on-going development of the Wisdom Panel® tests for genetic disorders, traits, and ancestry. She has published in multiple academic publications and contributed chapters to various textbooks.

Key Points
- Genetics is a rapidly changing field, and it will be essential to incorporate genetic testing into the veterinary practice of the future.
- Ancestry testing can be a helpful tool in the individualization of healthcare plans for mixed-breed dogs, since visual identification of a breed is unreliable.
- The types of genetic testing that can be useful in clinical practice include parentage testing, direct mutation testing, and phenotype testing.
- Genetic disease testing is important in both purebred and mixed-breed pets, and judicious use of such tests is the key to decreasing the risk of genetic disease in the pet population.
Introduction
The field of genetics has progressed far beyond most people’s recollections of Darwin’s Galapagos finches and Mendel’s wrinkled peas. In fact, there has been exponential growth in this area within the last few years alone. Most major animal species have had their genomes sequenced, including the human, dog, cat, horse, pig, cow, and mouse. With the new tools available, scientists have learned a tremendous amount about how traits and diseases occur and are inherited.
This knowledge is changing the way that we, as veterinarians, approach our patients. For example, it was only a few decades ago that a serious side effect of ivermectin was identified in some Collies (1) (see page 14). It is now known that the molecular cause is a small deletion in the multi- drug resistance gene which can eliminate the function of a vital drug-transport pump in the blood-brain barrier (2), and it is now evident that this mutation is not only present in many pure- and mixed-breed dogs other than the Collie, but that it involves many drugs beyond ivermectin (3). Such knowledge makes us better clinicians and leads to better care of our patients.
Understanding and utilizing these genetic advances enables clinicians to provide comprehensive care for patients and increase client awareness of the value of that care. We can provide individual care plans for our patients by tailoring our approach not only to our patient’s life stage, but also to their breed. Identifying breed-specific risks and customizing a patient’s care based on their breed background improves the client’s relationship with the veterinary practice and allows for more rapid diagnosis and earlier medical intervention.
Most veterinarians probably already take some breed differences into account when making medical decisions or speaking with owners, but it is important to develop a consistent message that the entire team can relay for each breed. This should be discussed with clients at an early point in any treatment so that they can be prepared, and the best possible wellness plan can be created for their pet. Well-informed owners are more likely to visit the clinic for routine care more often, perform the recommended preventative care, and recognize when pets are ill sooner.
Obviously, this type of breed-specific healthcare is easily applied to the portion of patients that are purebred dogs or pedigree cats, but now this benefit can be extended to mixed-breed canine, and increasingly feline, patients as well. DNA testing to evaluate the purebred ancestors within the recent lineage of a mixed-breed dog has been available for a decade now and the technology is constantly improving. Based on this information, veterinarians can help clients better understand their dog and create an individualized wellness plan for them. In this day and age it is a medical imperative to understand each patient’s breed history and treat them appropriately. [...]
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Wisdom HealthTM, Vancouver, WA, USA
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