Canine coat length - test of FGF5-gene variants

The coat appearance belongs clearly to the main morphologic distinctions among dogs of different breeds.

In some breeds, short coat and long coat is possible, like in collies, border collies, dachshunds, German shepherds and St. Bernards. In some breeds,long or short variant in inacceptable, like fluffy coat in Welsh Corgi.

Long coat phenotype is inherited in autosomal recesive trait - responsible mutation is c.284G>T in FGF5 gene. Long coated dogs have two FGF5 gene variants in both alleles (each from different parent). In case of mating two FGF5 carriers, toeretically, 25% long coated offspring will born. In some breeds long hair phenotype was not elucidated.

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Possible results:

• N/N - the dog does not carry c.284G>T variant specific for long hair - the dog has short hair
• N/FGF5 - the dog carries one copy of the variant gene - the dog is short-haired, but it can give birth to long-haired offsprings, if suitably crossed.
• FGF5/FGF5 - the dog carries two same variants in the FGF5 gene - the dog is long-haired

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Hair quality

There are distinguished three main characteristic hair types of dogs:

• hair length - short/long - FGF5 gene variants
• presence/absence of curls - KRT71 gene variants (Genomia does not tests these variants)
• presence/absence of traits: distinct moustache and eyebrows, characteristic for rough coated dogs - RSPO2 gene variants

Reference:

Cadieu E, Neff M, Quignon P, Walsh K, Chase K, Parker HG, Vonholdt BM, Rhue A, Boyko A, Byers A, et al.: Coat variation in the domestic dog is governed by variants in three genes. 2009;326:150-153.

D. J. E. Housley, P. J. Venta: The long and the short of it: evidence that FGF5 is a major determinant of canine ‘hair'-itability, Animal Genetics, August 2006