What Makes Bo’s Hair Curly?
August 27, 2009 by Peggy Rowland
Filed under Pets
Researchers from the University of Utah recently used data from Portuguese water dogs to find out which gene gives dogs curly hair or long, wavy hair.
In the photo below, University of Utah biologist K. Gordon Lark holds Mopsa, his Portuguese water dog with wavy hair. President Obama’s Portuguese water dog Bo has curly hair.
Photo credit: Sean Graff, seangraff.com
The team of researchers was led by National Institutes of Health geneticists. Lark and colleague Kevin Chase helped find the gene responsible for curly hair or wavy hair in dogs. The research team also found that variations in three genes account for 90% of seven major kinds of purebred dog coats.
Researchers studied more 1,000 dogs from 80 domestic breeds. Here’s what they found in the genes:
- RSPO2 is associated with whether or not a dog has a moustache and large eyebrows, known as furnishings
- FGF5 is linked to determining long or short fur
- KRT71 determines curly or wavy hair
Read the full story at the university’s website.
While it’s fun to name dog genes, there’s also a higher purpose. Researchers note that the findings may aid in understanding complex human diseases caused by multiple genes. Lark says that dogs share much of the same genome with humans.
(Photo: Sean Graff, seangraff.com)
