Leading the way: finding genes for neurologic disease in dogs using genome-wide mRNA sequencing

Forman and colleagues apply high-throughput sequencing to a single case of canine neonatal cerebellar cortical degeneration. This implementation of whole genome mRNA sequencing, the first reported in dog, is additionally unusual due to the analysis: the data was used not to examine transcript levels or annotate genes, but as a form of target capture that revealed the sequence of transcripts of genes associated with ataxia in humans. This approach entails risks. It would fail if, for example, the relevant transcripts were not sufficiently expressed for genotyping or were not associated with ataxia in humans. But here it pays off handsomely, identifying a single frameshift mutation that segregates with the disease. This work sets the stage for similar studies that take advantage of recent advances in genomics while exploiting the historical background of dog breeds to identify disease-causing mutations.