May 23, 2006

Dear Kerry Fancier,

I just talked to Liz Hansen, Animal Molecular Genetics Laboratory at the University of Missouri, regarding concerns of the research status and the recent AKC Canine Health Foundation communication.

Question 1 to Liz:
Is the vet school aware of documentation distributed by the AKC CHF that refers to PNA/MSD as 'common in Kerry Blues and Chinese Crested'?

Answer 1: No, we are not aware of the document. Liz confirmed with Dr. O'Brien, the vet school does not consider PNA/MSD as common disorder in either breed. If it were, it would be easier to solve. Liz reiterated, the vet school research dept has not published, nor distributed any updates since the CHF conference in Oct 2005.

***(I just received the CHF DVD of the presentations and the word 'common' was not used in the original presentation, slide set or the summary document. The word 'common' does appear in the summary slide set. The error lies with the CHF documentation. Gigi)

Question 2:
What is the status of the research? There is concern and rumor that the research is stalled or maybe stopped.

Answer 2: The research is not stalled or stopped. The isolation to the Park2 gene is the neighborhood, but there are a lot of houses to look in. Liz said she just ordered 50 more DNA test kits to look at the samples from another direction, one that has worked for other breeds. This time of year, at the school, is busy with graduation, vacations and grant submission paperwork. She will ask Dr. Johnson to give us an update we can present at the board meeting in Chicago.

Question 3:
At the AKC CHF conference that I attended in Oct 2005; Dr. O'Brien's presentation said the PNA/MSD research findings were going to be submitted to the National Institute of Health (NIH) as a grant proposal. Is there any news on that grant?

Answer 3: Liz said that they got a positive response from the NIH review committee. The research proposal was not denied, but requested further detail. This is good; Liz said most proposals are rejected on the first submittal.

***(Liz called me back; She said the NIH proposal was ranked 12th and the NIH typically grants money the top 25 proposals. They will know in June how much money they have. Gigi)

Question 4:
In 2004, based on what the research had found, there was talk of the vet school issuing 90 to 95% clear pedigree certificates. What is the status of that program?

Answer 4: The vet school will not be issuing any 90-95% clear certificates due to the possibility of false positive tests, which would diminish the confidence level. They would prefer to wait for a definitive DNA marker. However, they are contacting known affected sample providers, one 12 yr old male and some puppy mill dogs, for further sampling and test breeding. The vet school is aware of mills dumping Kerries. Liz said they contact the mills directly and buy affected dogs.

Submitted by,
Gigi Lorentz-Reiling

Last Updated: 05/24/2006, 7:55 am