11.13
School of Veterinary Medicine
Estrogen’s opposing effects on mammary tumors in dogs
Estrogen’s opposing effects on mammary tumors in dogs
Estrogen’s role in canine mammary cancer is more complex than previously understood. New findings may help explain why dogs spayed at a young age are more likely to develop more aggressive cancers.
Genes play a role in dog breed differences in behavior
Genes play a role in dog breed differences in behavior
Border collies are highly trainable, greyhounds love to chase, and German shepherds make good guard dogs. While the environment plays a role, traits like these are highly heritable. A new study identifies 131 genetic variants associated with breed differences in behavior.
Identifying a gene for canine night blindness
Identifying a gene for canine night blindness
An international team of researchers led by the School of Veterinary Medicine’s Keiko Miyadera has identified the gene mutation responsible for a form of night blindness in dogs. Strategies to treat this condition could also inform treatment of other diseases that rely on targeting this cell type.
Is treatment forever? Success of gene therapy for inherited blindness depends on timing
Is treatment forever? Success of gene therapy for inherited blindness depends on timing
An FDA-approved gene therapy for Leber congenital amaurosis, an inherited vision disorder with a childhood onset and progressive nature, has improved patients’ sight. But new research underscores the importance of further investigation to halt the progression of the disorder.
The diet-microbiome connection in inflammatory bowel disease
The diet-microbiome connection in inflammatory bowel disease
Dogs with a Crohn’s-like disease fed a special diet were found to have characteristic changes in their gut microbiomes, paralleling changes seen in children with Crohn’s.
Where ethics, welfare, and sustainability meet swine
Where ethics, welfare, and sustainability meet swine
At New Bolton Center’s model pig farm, free-roaming sows are implanted with RFID chips, nourished by organic feed, and powered by solar energy.
Game Commission and Penn Vet partner to protect wildlife
Game Commission and Penn Vet partner to protect wildlife
The Pennsylvania Wildlife Futures Program will increase disease surveillance, management, and research to better protect wildlife throughout the state from a spread of diseases, including chronic wasting disease and West Nile virus.
Lung cell transplant boosts healing after the flu
Lung cell transplant boosts healing after the flu
A serious case of the flu can cause lasting damage to the lungs. In a study in mice, researchers found that transplanting cells from the lungs of healthy animals enhanced healing in others that had had a severe respiratory infection.
100th puppy
100th puppy
An 8-week-old black Labrador retriever is the 100th puppy to enter the Penn Vet Working Dog Center research-based training program.
Keeping parasites from sticking to mosquito guts could block disease transmission
Keeping parasites from sticking to mosquito guts could block disease transmission
Researchers at the School of Veterinary Medicine show how a new model for studying the way parasites known as kinetoplastids adhere to mosquitoes’ insides could illuminate strategies for curbing diseases.
In the News
Huffington Post
What to do if your dog eats weed
Kenneth Drobatz of the School of Veterinary Medicine spoke about the increase in cases of pets who have ingested marijuana. “We see this a lot during the holiday season when kids come home from college and bring home brownies or something like that,” he said.
FULL STORY →
Philadelphia Magazine
A new cannabis study is launching in Philly — for your dog
Kimberly Agnello of the School of Veterinary Medicine is quoted on her work studying the safety and efficacy in CBD use for dogs.
FULL STORY →
PBS
Study finds kittens bond with their human caregivers like babies do
Carlo Siracusa of the School of Veterinary Medicine advised readers to keep in mind that while babies and kittens are similar, they’re not analogous; scientific findings about one may not hold true for the other. “We should be open-minded about the idea that there are other variables [at play],” he said.
FULL STORY →
Fox News
Dogs of 9/11: Search and rescue canines worked tirelessly in the days following terror attacks
Cindy Otto of the School of Veterinary Medicine and the Penn Vet Working Dog Center praised the search and rescue dogs that assisted first responders on Sept. 11, 2001. Otto herself was deployed to Ground Zero to treat dogs returning from searches at the time.
FULL STORY →
Philadelphia Inquirer
Breeding has shaped dogs’ brains, MRI scans reveal
Wilfried Mai of the School of Veterinary Medicine weighed in on a study that analyzed cognitive differences between dog breeds. “The paper demonstrates very nicely differences in brain morphology with either reduction or hypertrophy [larger size] of certain brain areas that are known to be associated with specific behaviors,” he said.
FULL STORY →