11.20
Katherine Unger Baillie
Science News Officer
kbaillie@upenn.edu
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.
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In the News
BBC News
Meet the Dogs Being Trained to Sniff Out Looted Ancient Treasures
The School of Veterinary Medicine’s Working Dog Center is collaborating with Red Arch Cultural Heritage Law & Policy Research to train five dogs to identify stolen artifacts. (Video)
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The Washington Post
Does Your Pooch Really Need Prozac?
Carlo Siracusa of the School of Veterinary Medicine weighed in on the use of psychiatric drugs in veterinary medicine. Siracusa says that drugs can be a more “benign” option than other behavior modification tools, such as shock collars.
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