Fantastic contribution from the Finnish Cairn Terrier Club

We're incredibly excited and grateful for the generous contribution from the Finnish Cairn Terrier Club to our research project into livershunts in dogs.

These past few years, Frank and his team have been searching for the genes responsible for liver shunts. In order to achieve this, Frank has been analyzing the complete DNA of as many dogs as possible with liver shunts, aiming to determine where the DNA differs from dogs without liver shunts. In 2018, thanks to the generous donations from dog clubs and their members around the world, Frank thinks he might have discovered which genes are the culprits.

Seeing that less than 2% of an organism’s DNA consists of actual genes, Frank has now started investigating whether parts part of this 'remaining' DNA is involved in switching genes ‘on’ or ‘off’ – including the genes responsible for liver shunts. These ‘on-off buttons’ appear to be essential during the development of an individual in the womb: it seems that they determine whether or not a dog is born with a liver shunt. In his search for any underlying causes of congenital extrahepatic portosystemic shunts, Frank has started to look for any mutations within these on / off buttons.

Thanks to the generous support of the Finnish Cairn Terrier Club and many other supporters, Frank is able to continue generating data, that include these types of mutations.

Yet another essential step in our joint effort to eradicate liver shunts for good. Thank you so much, FCTC!