How Science Came to Dogs (and Cats)
These early studies “highlighted both the potential that we could learn from dogs, but also that we would need larger sample sizes to do that well,” says Elinor Karlsson, a geneticist at UMass Chan School of Medicine and the Broad Institute. And so researchers began creating large citizen science projects, seeking DNA samples and data from dogs across the United States.
Pet owners rose to the challenge. Lifetime study of the Golden Retrieverbegan recruiting in 2012, has followed more than 3,000 dogs in an effort to identify genetic and environmental risk factors for cancer, which is particularly common in this breed. Since 2019, Dog Aging Projecta long-term study of health and longevity, which enrolled nearly 50,000 dogs.
Dr. Karlsson’s own project, Darwin’s dogsThere are 44,000 canines and counting. (About 4,000 have had their genomes sequenced.) Researchers are mining the data for clues about bone cancer, compulsive behavior, and other traits. Among initial findings: Although many behavioral traits, such as sociability and trainability, are heritable, they are widely distributed throughout the canine kingdom, and Breed is a poor predictor about the personality of each dog.
This spring, Dr. Karlsson announced the long-awaited expansion: Darwin’s Cat. “I am a total cat person – never had a dog,” she says. Then, in an email, she added, “I want to know if ‘cat sleeping on your head’ is influenced by genetics.”
Data Controller
These projects have been made possible by faster and more affordable gene sequencing. The “tremendous enthusiasm” of pet owners was indispensable, said Dr. Ostrander, who now heads the research team. Dog10K Project, an effort to build a comprehensive global catalog of dog genetic diversity.
