Is dilated cardiomyopathy an inherited disease?
Last week we covered some of the basics about dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in general and how it relates to the Great Dane in particular. Unfortunately Great Danes are the second most common breed of dog to suffer from DCM. We’re lucky in one respect, though. Dr. Kathryn M. Meurs, a professor of cardiovascular medicine at Ohio State’s College of Veterinary Medicine, has been working in recent years to identify the clinical features of DCM in the Great Dane, to determine whether DCM is inherited in the breed, and if it is inherited, to determine how it is transmitted from parent to offspring. Dr. Meurs is also striving to identify a “marker gene” that can be used to develop a blood test to screen for DCM. Meurs’s research has received substantial funding from the AKC’s Canine Health Foundation and support from the Great Dane Health Foundation of America (GDHFA) and the Great Dane Club of America (GDCA). In a recent paper that appeared in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical As
