Update from Dr. Greer re: PDE

I emailed Dr Greer last week to see if there were any updates on her research that I could share with the group. I just got the following email. I'm going to ask Kyle to read the publication and see what he thinks since he's a genetics guy. I have the full publication in PDF if anyone would like me to email it to them. Trying to figure out if I can get it posted here but not sure I can.

Hi Amanda,
I have identified the genes that contribute significantly to PDE, and am currently working on getting the genetic test publicly available. The publication should be attached, and below is the general description of our latest work. Please let me know if you have any questions; I would be happy to answer them and review the implications of our findings.
Sincerely,
KA Greer

Our studies of Pug Dog Encephalitis (PDE) have determined that MRI can confirm PDE when interpreted by an experienced veterinary neurologist. We have also determined that anticonvulsant medications aid in the dogs’ comfort and offer extension of lifespan, but do not alleviate the disease (Levine et al., 2008). The anticonvulsant therapies are the primary treatment regimen for extending lifespan when a dog is believed to have PDE; steroids and other treatment plans do not significantly contribute to lifespan extension based on these studies. Furthermore, we identified the genetic components significantly contributing to the development of Pug Dog Encephalitis, and have completed sequencing the genes identified (there are three immune-related genes involved). Their presence has been confirmed in a significant number of affected animals. We have validated the gene combination (ie. “haplotype”) associated with PDE and are able to identify those animals at increased risk for developing PDE. We are also able to identify those animals who have a significantly decreased risk of developing PDE, and those whose haplotype appears to be neutral with relation to developing or resisting PDE. Because the increased, decreased, and neutral risk for developing PDE is associated with several genes, genetic counseling will be necessary to adequately evaluate each animal tested. Currently, we are actively working on verifying the identified alleles in a world-wide population of Pugs to ensure validity of the identified genetic testing methods. Our allele identification needs further validation to be certain we do not inaccurately call any alleles “rare” or “susceptible” when indeed they were simply present in a Pug population primarily outside the USA. These validations and verifications are not anticipated to change the current status of the genetic test developed or the genes identified for PDE, but will merely serve to make the testing results more solid and reliable.

Good information, and very encouraging to know someone is researching this problem from a genetic standpoint, rather than just reacting to the syptoms.

If you click on the thumbnail below, you should be taken to a site that allows you to download the article.

Identifying the gene sequence is huge! Bless Dr. Greer forever.

Wow! That is so much progress. Amanda, can you forward me the email from Dr. Greer? I'd like to send it to my vet. Does she still need donors for her research? If so, I'll mention it to my vet also. She is doing amazing work.

smoochieface wrote:Wow! That is so much progress. Amanda, can you forward me the email from Dr. Greer? I'd like to send it to my vet. Does she still need donors for her research? If so, I'll mention it to my vet also. She is doing amazing work.

Yes, I'll forward it to you. I'm not sure about donors. I'll have to ask her.

That is an incredibly significant finding. Thank Dog someone like Dr Greer is working on this. Amanda, can I please copy and paste this for the PDE site?

Aussie Witch wrote:That is an incredibly significant finding. Thank Dog someone like Dr Greer is working on this. Amanda, can I please copy and paste this for the PDE site?

Sure!

I am going to talk to my vet to see if we can get Teddy's MRI and DNA sent to Dr. Greer. I have had my suspisions that Teddy died of PDE, but his age didn't fit the parameters. He also had a history of a stroke so that was unusual too. It would put my mind at easy to know though.

Can you e-mail it to me as well and I'll forward on to my vet? Please and thank you. So glad they are learning more about this awful disease.

GracieNEmma wrote:Can you e-mail it to me as well and I'll forward on to my vet? Please and thank you. So glad they are learning more about this awful disease.

Just sent it to you!

I'm going to share this with the DFW Rescue folks. Thanks for following up with her Amanda!!

Amanda, could you email me as well? I'd love for my vet to get to see this....

I think that this is a *massive* step forward and would love to know more about it, especially with regards to the gene pools outside the US.