Domestication causes smaller brain size in dogs than in the wolf: Study challenges notion. Really!

Seems plausible to me that lifelong decadence, luxury, and pampering reduces the brain size or deteriorates brain function of domesticated animals unless they are challenged! Happens to healthy humans too with sedentary life styles etc.. 😊 Caution: Satire

Domestication causes smaller brain size in dogs than in the wolf: Study challenges notion

Cancer vaccine for dogs almost doubles survival rates in clinical trial

Are our so called best friends becoming guinea pigs for cancer vaccinations? If so, we should be thankful!

"... For the new study, scientists at Yale adapted existing human cancer treatments to find a new version that could benefit both humans and dogs, since some cancers share properties between species. Monoclonal antibodies are an emerging treatment where patients receive infusions of proteins that bind to EGFR and HER2, two proteins that are overexpressed in several cancers like colorectal or breast cancer. ...

After identifying a compound that did just that, the researchers tested it in mice and then dogs. It proved so successful that multiple clinical trials have been conducted in the past eight years, involving over 300 dogs, with the treatment binding to tumors and messing with the pathways that let it grow. ..."

From the abstract:

"Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) is overexpressed on a number of human cancers, and often is indicative of a poor outcome. Treatment of EGFR/HER2 overexpressing cancers includes monoclonal antibody therapy (cetuximab/trastuzumab) either alone or in conjunction with other standard cancer therapies. While monoclonal antibody therapy has been proven to be efficacious in the treatment of EGFR/HER2 overexpressing tumors, drawbacks include the lack of long-lasting immunity and acquired resistance to monoclonal therapy. An alternative approach is to induce a polyclonal anti-EGFR/HER2 tumor antigen response by vaccine therapy. In this phase I/II open-label study, we examined anti-tumor immunity in companion dogs with spontaneous EGFR expressing tumors. Canine cancers represent an outbred population in which the initiation, progression of disease, mutations and growth factors closely resemble that of human cancers. Dogs with EGFR expressing tumors were immunized with a short peptide of the EGFR extracellular domain with sequence homology to HER2. Serial serum analyses demonstrated high titers of EGFR/HER2 binding antibodies with biological activity similar to that of cetuximab and trastuzumab. Canine antibodies bound both canine and human EGFR on tumor cell lines and tumor tissue. CD8 T cells and IgG deposition were evident in tumors from immunized dogs. The antibodies inhibited EGFR intracellular signaling and inhibited tumor growth in vitro. Additionally, we illustrate objective responses in reducing tumors at metastatic sites in host animals. The data support the approach of amplifying anti-tumor immunity that may be relevant in combination with other immune modifying therapies such as checkpoint inhibitors."

Cancer vaccine for dogs almost doubles survival rates in clinical trial

Novel cancer vaccine offers new hope for dogs — and those who love them A Yale researcher developed a vaccine that can slow or halt certain cancers in dogs. And it could be used to treat humans in the future.

Vaccine-induced ErbB (EGFR/HER2)-specific immunity in spontaneous canine cancer (open access, but published in August 2021)

Credits: Human Progress Weekly Progress Roundup

Fig. 2 Serum from cEGFR p527 peptide immunized dogs bind EGFR/HER2 on both canine and human cells and osteosarcoma tumor tissue.



Dental implant for dogs holds promise for gum repair, regeneration for humans

Since when do dogs need dental implants? For canine periodontitis??? Do pet dogs now have lifestyle diseases other than obesity?

"Israeli startup BioChange has developed a tissue regeneration technology called ReGum that has been shown effective in helping to heal gum disease (periodontitis) in dogs.

ReGum is now commercially available for veterinary use and reportedly is the only product of its kind. A formulation for humans is expected within a few years. ..."

Dental implant holds promise for gum repair, regeneration - ISRAEL21c Following positive results of study on dogs with periodontitis, ReGum may be available for humans within a few years.

A newfound nose-brain link helps explain why dogs are good sniffers

I want a dog nose too! 👃😄 Or how blind dogs can still see!

"... Their noses hold between 200 million and 1 billion odor molecule sensors, compared with the 5 million receptors estimated to dwell in a human nose. And dogs’ olfactory bulbs can be up to 30 times larger than people’s.  ...

But one tract was totally new. ... connected the olfactory bulb to the occipital lobe, the part of the dog brain that handles vision. “There have been lots of people who theorized that this connection existed, based on the behavior of trained dogs and detection dogs,” ... But this newfound connection between smell and sight suggests that the two are intricately linked. Perhaps this anatomical link could be why smell can often compensate when a dog’s sight goes  ... “Blind dogs can still play fetch.” ..."

From the abstract:

"The domestic dog’s olfactory sense is widely recognized as being highly sensitive with a diverse function, however, little is known about the structure of their olfactory system. This study examined a cohort of mixed sex mesaticephalic canines and used Diffusion MRI (DTI), to map connections from the olfactory bulb to other cortical regions of the brain. The results were validated using the Klingler dissection method. An extensive pathway composed of five white matter tracts connecting to the occipital lobe, cortical spinal tract, limbic system, piriform lobe and entorhinal pathway was identified. This is the first documentation of a direct connection between the olfactory bulb and occipital lobe in any species and is a step towards further understanding how the dog integrates olfactory stimuli in their cognitive function. ..."

A newfound nose-brain link helps explain why dogs are good sniffers | Science News Information highways connect smell and vision in a way that hadn’t been described before

Extensive Connections of the Canine Olfactory Pathway Revealed by Tractography and Dissection (no public access)

Dog coronavirus jumps to humans, with a protein shift

Millions of dog owners beware! Mask mandates, quarantine and lockdown are coming for your dogs! 

Well there is possibly a chicken and egg question: Did humans infect dogs first?

Are we dealing with zoonosis (animal to human) or zooanthroponosis (human to anima) transmission?

(Caution: Satire) 😄

"Cornell researchers have identified a shift that occurs in canine coronavirus that points to a possible pattern of change found in other coronaviruses and which may provide clues to how they transmit to humans from animals. ...
A new canine coronavirus was first identified in two Malaysian human patients who developed pneumonia in 2017-18. ...
Now, a team led by Cornell and Temple University researchers has identified a pattern that occurs in a terminus of the canine coronavirus spike protein – the area of the virus that facilitates entry into a host cell: The virus shifts from infecting both the intestines and respiratory system of the animal host to infecting only the respiratory system in a human host. ..."

From the abstract:

"A canine coronavirus (CCoV) has now been reported from two independent human samples from Malaysia (respiratory, collected in 2017–2018; CCoV-HuPn-2018) and Haiti (urine, collected in 2017); these two viruses were nearly genetically identical. In an effort to identify any novel adaptations associated with this apparent shift in tropism we carried out detailed evolutionary analyses of the spike gene of this virus in the context of related Alphacoronavirus 1 species. The spike 0-domain retains homology to CCoV2b (enteric infections) and Transmissible Gastroenteritis Virus (TGEV; enteric and respiratory). This domain is subject to relaxed selection pressure and an increased rate of molecular evolution. It contains unique amino acid substitutions, including within a region important for sialic acid binding and pathogenesis in TGEV. Overall, the spike gene is extensively recombinant, with a feline coronavirus type II strain serving a prominent role in the recombinant history of the virus. Molecular divergence time for a segment of the gene where temporal signal could be determined, was estimated at around 60 years ago. We hypothesize that the virus had an enteric origin, but that it may be losing that particular tropism, possibly because of mutations in the sialic acid binding region of the spike 0-domain."

Dog coronavirus jumps to humans, with a protein shift | Cornell Chronicle

Recent Zoonotic Spillover and Tropism Shift of a Canine Coronavirus Is Associated with Relaxed Selection and Putative Loss of Function in NTD Subdomain of Spike Protein (open access)