Deciphering the genetic architecture underlying valvular heart disease in dogs - A multidisciplinary project to improve cardiac health

The valvular heart disease myxomatous mitral valve disease, MMVD, is the most common heart disease in dogs and the disease is also affecting around 2-3% of the human population.

MMVD is characterized by progressive degeneration of the mitral valve; eventually leading to mitral valve leakage and cardiac volume overload, associated with congestive heart failure and increased mortality.

As the inciting mechanisms leading to valve degeneration remain poorly understood, the only available medical treatments to date serve to ameliorate the secondary detrimental consequences of the disease.The overarching aim of this research project is to decipher the genetic architecture and the molecular mechanisms driving the initiation and progression of MMVD in dogs.

By evaluating cardiac tissue- and blood samples from the largest cohorts of dogs ever investigated systematically for this specific purpose, we will integrate studies of phenotypic characteristics, cardiac tissue morphology, protein expression patterns and genetic architecture in affected individuals and healthy controls.The project has the potential to identify novel biomarkers and potential pharmaceutical drug targets for the disease thereby facilitating diagnosis, prevention and treatment of the disease in both humans and dogs. (“One Health”).

The project is a collaborative project between researchers and clinicians at several universities in Sweden and abroad.