AKC Canine Health Foundation awarded five grants to Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2019, the largest number the college had ever received from the foundation at one time. This influx of funding not only amplifies research efforts but also strengthens veterinary medicine as a whole by generating new diagnostics and treatments that directly improve clinical care for dogs.

The funding supports multiple, concurrent projects across the college aimed at better diagnostics and genetic understanding of canine diseases. Researchers at the college — working alone and in collaboration with Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and the University of Missouri-Columbia — will use the awards to advance studies ranging from skin and infectious-disease diagnostics to spinal genetics and eye disease. Additionally, such funding supports the training of veterinary students and clinician-scientists, ensuring a future generation of experts in canine health. How does funding for canine health research at universities impact veterinary medicine?

Dr. Harm HogenEsch, professor of immunopathology and associate dean for research, described one project focused on skin disease. “In this research we are performing a detailed analysis of the lipid composition of the epidermis and blood of healthy dogs and dogs with AD using a fast unbiased mass spectrometry strategy developed by our team of scientists with expertise in veterinary dermatology, analytical chemistry, biostatistics, and inflammation,” he said. This type of complex research reinforces the significance of studying a wide range of canine health issues, from skin ailments to more serious complications.

Researchers are also expanding panels for infectious-disease testing and pursuing genetic studies of pigmentary uveitis, an eye disease that can progress to blindness. “If a dog is clinically ill and the veterinarian suspects an infectious disease, the veterinarian could request this all-inclusive panel, without having to pick and choose which pathogens to include for diagnostic testing,” said Dr. Rebecca Wilkes, assistant professor. Dr. Wendy Townsend, associate professor of ophthalmology, added: “From this new research study, we should be able to identify specific genes and alleles associated with this disease and create a genetic risk score to measure an individual’s genetic risk for developing pigmentary uveitis.” Vivid images accompanying the announcement included a radiograph showing a dog with a severe spinal abnormality; the college noted that pigmentary uveitis can often result in blindness due to cataracts and glaucoma. It’s worth noting that common health issues under active study in canine research include cancers, epilepsy, and heart disease, which the funding helps address.

The AKC Canine Health Foundation funds competitive grant programs that academic veterinary centers apply to in order to support research that prevents, treats, and cures canine diseases. The foundation’s support of five concurrent projects at Purdue represents an expansion of that relationship and a concentrated investment in the college’s canine research portfolio. What steps can pet owners take to support canine health research initiatives?

College leaders framed the awards as enabling more integrated work across specialties — dermatology, ophthalmology, genetics, and infectious disease — and as a boost for clinical research that can translate to diagnostic panels and genetic risk tools for practicing veterinarians and breeders. Work supported by the grants will take place at Purdue and involve collaborators at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and the University of Missouri-Columbia. Investigators named in the announcement include Dr. Harm HogenEsch, Dr. Kari Ekenstedt, Dr. Rebecca Wilkes, and Dr. Wendy Townsend, each contributing project-specific expertise to the funded studies.

The awards were announced in 2019 and mark the largest number of concurrent AKC Canine Health Foundation grants the college had received to that point. The funding is expected to support study design, laboratory analyses and development of diagnostic and genetic tools that clinicians can use in practice.

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Original reporting: view the original article.