Histocompatability alleles conferring susceptibility
to canine diabetes, immune-mediated thyroiditis and immune-mediated
hemolytic anemia. (CHF GRANT #305)
Autoimmune diseases cause significant amounts of mortality
and debilitating disease in dogs. In humans many autoimmune diseases
occur only in individuals expressing one of the few predisposing histocompatibility
genes. For example, all cases of type I diabetes in humans are associated
with only a few of the many alleleic forms of class II histocompatibility
genes. Consequently, if the frequencies of these few alleles were reduced
by half, the incidence of diabetes would be reduced by half. Here we
propose to characterize histocompatibility susceptibility alleles for
three major, heritable canine autoimmune diseases - diabetes, immune-mediated
thyroiditis and immune-mediated hemolytic anemia. If any of these
three debilitating (or lethal) autoimmune diseases have a restricted
number of susceptibility alleles it will allow: (1) development of
diagnostic tests for identifying individuals at risk for prophylactic
therapy and research and (2) reducing the incidence of the disease
by reducing the breeding of individuals carrying the predisposing histocompatibility
alleles. For each of the three autoimmune diseases, we propose to collect
DNA samples from approximately 100 purebred dogs diagnosed with the disease.
Histocompatibility genes will be cloned and sequenced for each dog for
a total of approximately 1100 sequences. Histocompatiility alleles will
be tested for significant associations with each of the autoimmune diseases.
Interested owners with dogs diagnosed with any of the
three diseases should contact Wayne Potts (potts@biology.utah.edu) or
Linda Morrison (801-585-9678) at the University of Utah. We will then
send out a DNA collection packet that will require the owner or the veterinarian
to conduct a cheek swab to be returned along with the veterinarian assurance
that the dog has been diagnosed with one of the three diseases.
The minimum diagnostic criteria for each disease is:
Diabetes: Fasting Blood Glucose greater than 120ug/ml
Autoimmune mediated hemolytic anemia: Positive (disease
state) for Auto Agglutination of RBC, Direct Coomb’s Test and Spherocytosis
of RBC.
Autoimmune -mediated thyroiditis: Low Total/Free T4 by
Equilibrium Dialysis (<11pmol/L) and positive for thyroglobulin
auto-antibodies.
There will be no cost to the owner with the exception
that many veterinarians do not conduct the thyroglobulin auto-antibodies
test during the diagnosis of thyroiditis. This project will be unable
to fund this test if it has not already been conducted. The PI is Dr.
Wayne Potts, and his email is
potts@biology.utah.edu
Wayne K. Potts
University of Utah
Department of Biology
257 S 1400 E
Salt Lake City, UT 84112
801 585 9677 (Off) 9678 (Lab) 581 4668 (Fax)
potts@biology.utah.edu
http://stormy.biology.utah.edu/ 
