Weimaraner https://scienceblogs.com/ en Dog DNA provides clues to spina bifida and other neural tube birth defects in humans https://scienceblogs.com/lifelines/2013/07/22/dog-dna-provides-clues-to-spina-bifida-and-other-neural-tube-birth-defects-in-humans <span>Dog DNA provides clues to spina bifida and other neural tube birth defects in humans</span> <div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field--item"><div style="width: 330px;display:block;margin:0 auto;"><a href="/files/lifelines/files/2013/07/weimaraner-puppy-lg.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-1640 " alt="Image from: Noa Safra, UC Davis" src="/files/lifelines/files/2013/07/weimaraner-puppy-lg.jpg" width="320" height="228" /></a> Image from: Noa Safra, UC Davis </div> <p>Weimaraner dogs are helping researchers to understand neural tube birth defects, like anencephaly (where the brain or skull do not fully develop) and spina bifida (where the spinal column is not fully enclosed). In new research published this week in <em>PLOS One</em>, Dr. Noa Safra (UC Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine) and colleagues mapped the genomes of Weimaraner dogs that had spinal dysraphism, a neural tube defect, along with samples from humans with spina bifida. They discovered mutations in a gene called NKX2-8 that is known to be involved in embryonic development in the canine samples, but only 6 out of 149 of the human samples. Certainly more studies are needed to determine if mutations in this gene are related to neural tube defects in a portion of human cases.</p> <p><strong>Sources:</strong></p> <div> <p>Safra N, Bassuk A, Ferguson P, et al. Genome-Wide Association Mapping in Dogs Enables Identification of the Homeobox Gene, <em>NKX2-8</em>, as a Genetic Component of Neural Tube Defects in Humans. <em>PLOS One Genetics</em>. 2013.</p> <p><strong></strong><a href="http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=10665">UC Davis Press Release</a></p> </div> </div> <span><a title="View user profile." href="/author/dr-dolittle" lang="" about="/author/dr-dolittle" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="">dr. dolittle</a></span> <span>Mon, 07/22/2013 - 10:13</span> <div class="field field--name-field-blog-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-inline"> <div class="field--label">Tags</div> <div class="field--items"> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/life-science-0" hreflang="en">Life Science</a></div> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/anencephaly" hreflang="en">anencephaly</a></div> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/birth-defect" hreflang="en">birth defect</a></div> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/dog-0" hreflang="en">dog</a></div> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/pregnancy" hreflang="en">pregnancy</a></div> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/spina-bifida" hreflang="en">spina bifida</a></div> <div class="field--item"><a href="/tag/weimaraner" hreflang="en">Weimaraner</a></div> </div> </div> <section> </section> <ul class="links inline list-inline"><li class="comment-forbidden"><a href="/user/login?destination=/lifelines/2013/07/22/dog-dna-provides-clues-to-spina-bifida-and-other-neural-tube-birth-defects-in-humans%23comment-form">Log in</a> to post comments</li></ul> Mon, 22 Jul 2013 14:13:50 +0000 dr. dolittle 150100 at https://scienceblogs.com