Development of a Multi-Generational DNA Tissue Bank and Registry for Tibetan Terriers: An Effort to Expedite Development of Genetic Markers and to Provide Tools Useful in Breeding Decisions Stuart F. Eckmann Co-Chairman, Health Committee Tibetan Terrier Club of America  Gary S. Johnson, DVM, PhD  University of Missouri

Moderators:

Lee Arnold has recently retired from being a mid-day on-air personality at WQEW in New York City. After a short retirement, he is back on the air at VVWSW in New York. After 46 years in broadcasting, he just can't stay away from a microphone. Mr. Arnold has been recognized professionally by being awarded Country Music DJ of the Year by Billboard Magazine, the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association. He earned his Masters Degree in Communication Arts from Boston University.

Mr. Arnold is a member of the Board of Directors of the Somerset Hills Kennel Club and has also served as the Treasurer and Vice-President of Ramapo Kennel Club. He and his wife Romana have bred and shown BIS and BISS Chinese Shar-Pei. Mr. Arnold is very active in health issues with his breed. He is a founder and currently serves as Chairman of the Chinese Shar-Pei Club of America Charitable Trust as well as the AKC Delegate representing the Chinese Shar-Pei Club of America. Mr. Arnold was elected Secretary of the Board of Directors of the AKC Canine Health Foundation in March 1999.

Bruce Andrew Korson is a graduate of New York University. His business career focused on design and production design, including set designs for Dolly, Midnight Cowboy, Funny Girl and The Owl and the Pussy Cat.

Mr. Korson has been a breeder and exhibitor of Boxers since 1973. He has bred numerous AKC Champions, including the top winning Boxer bitch in breed history. Mr. Korson has served as the President of the Boxer Club of Long Island and as Secretary and member of the show committee of the American Boxer Club for over ten years. He is cofounder and President of the American Boxer Charitable Trust. Licensed to judge Boxers in 1981, he has judged the breed both here and abroad. He currently serves as the President of the Westbury Kennel Club and, as a Director of the AKC Canine Health Foundation, he is the Chairman of the President's Council.

Summary:

Tibetan Terriers have a number of genetic conditions, including PRA, lens luxation, cataracts, canine ceroid lipofuscinosis (CCL), thyroid problems, and deafness. Unfortunately, by the time some of these conditions become apparent, dogs have often been bred, resulting in affected offspring. The advantage of being able to identify these conditions as early as possible is that breeders will be able to make better-informed decisions regarding their breeding programs.

In the past, in order to identify a genetic marker for conditions like those affecting Tibetan Terriers, researchers have had to breed several generations of dogs with that problem. By working directly with Tibetan Terrier breeders and dog owners, and by banking DNA obtained from blood samples, along with morphology and health profiles, some of the goals of this project were to: (1) provide breeders with information which could help them reduce the incidence of specific genetic conditions; (2) cut the time it takes to identify these genetic markers; and (3) demonstrate that we could eliminate the need for breeding colonies for research purposes.

The purpose of this project was not to collect samples for any specific DNA mapping efforts, but rather to obtain the critical mass of DNA samples from family clusters needed for genetic research. We also hoped to collect and archive samples and information as a pilot project that could be adapted by other breed clubs. Gary S. Johnson, DVM, Ph.D., of the University of Missouri School of Veterinary Medicine, provided his guidance and his lab's resources for DNA extraction. G. Gregory Keller, DVM, MS, Executive Director of the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA), provided his organization's guidance as a registry for genetic conditions.

Tibetan Terrier health and morphology profiles were developed to document symptoms and phenotypes consistent with known conditions, as well as to create a database which would help identify other correlates of which we might not be currently aware. Blood collection kits were created with instructions and materials for shipment to the University of Missouri, where the DNA and data are currently archived. We have used the breed club newsletter as our primary means of communication and soliciting participation. Requests for participation have been posted on Tibetan Terrier and CERF websites. In addition, we also made a personal presentation at and created a display for our national specialty show.

Those involved with the project regard it as a success - not in terms of reaching a quantifiable endpoint but by demonstrating, as a pilot project, the process experienced in attempting to achieve the original goals. As a small breed club, with about 500 members, we had hoped to obtain about 250 samples in the first year. We are still short of that number but have well over 300 requests for blood collection kits. While we have our own timeframe, the average breeder and pet owner will, understandably, hold onto the collection kit until the next scheduled visit to the veterinarian.

Those breeders who already had a focus on health issues were the first to contribute to the DNA Bank & Registry. Many of their pet owners were very willing to comply with requests for blood samples. One unexpected benefit of this project has been an increased openness between some participating breeders about potential genetic conditions in their lines. It is this type of ongoing communication - not just development of genetic tests that has the potential to reduce the incidence of specific conditions through more informed breeding programs. Some breeders who were conceptually in favor of the DNA Bank & Registry have been slow to participate. They are concerned. about the potential stigma that the identification of a genetic problem in their dogs might have on their breeding program. We expect this to be an ongoing education issue.

Occasionally, requests for participation have come a little too late. In these instances, we have been able to use both the most recent health information and necropsy findings to complete the. health and morphology profiles, and we have been able to use DNA obtained from the necropsies. It is our hope that, once this type of bank is more commonplace, pathologists with relevant information on a genetic condition affecting the breed will routinely report their findings to and provide a tissue sample for a breed's DNA Bank & Registry. It will also be helpful when pathologists start freezing unfixed tissue for DNA extraction and possible electron microscopy.

Our next step will be to expand the project beyond breed club membership to the entire Tibetan Terrier population. Because this was set up as a pilot project or prototype, it was designed so that this or any other breed could ultimately take it further in two ways. First,

so that the data and DNA might be archived with an independent registry not directly involved with any research projects. And second, so that once specific genetic tests are available this registry might use the data, without additional testing, to identify litters from parents previously shown to be clear of that specific condition. The Tibetan Terrier DNA Bank & Registry is a pilot project which could be implemented by any breed club.

This work is supported by the following grant from the AKC Canine Health Foundation: No. 1652: Development of a Multi-Generational DNA Tissue Bank and Registry for Tibetan Terriers (Sponsored in part by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals and the Tibetan Terrier Club of America)

Biographical Profile

Stuart F. Eckmann is Co-Chairman of the Health Committee of the Tibetan Terrier Club of America, Inc. and breed club liaison to the AKC Canine Health Foundation. In addition to his work on the Tibetan Terrier DNA Bank and Registry, he has participated in the development of the breed's Voluntary Open Health Registry. He is involved with therapy dog work.

Dr. Gary Johnson is on the faculty in the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology in the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Missouri. He has a Bachelors Degree from Augsburg College, a PhD from Kansas State University and a DVM from the University of Minnesota. He has postdoctoral training from Johns Hopkins University and the New York State Department of Health. His early research was on bleeding diseases of dogs. For the last ten years his research has focused on the use of DNA markers to study inherited diseases and quantitative traits in dogs and cattle. Dr. Johnson breeds and exhibits Irish Terriers.