Inheritance of equine sarcoid disease in Franches-Montagnes horses

• Published in: The veterinary journal (1997) Vol. 199; no. 1; pp. 68 - 71
• Main Authors: Christen, Garance, Gerber, Vinzenz, Dolf, Gaudenz, Burger, Dominique, Koch, Christoph
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.01.2014
• Subjects: Animals; Breeding; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Heritability; Horse; Horse Diseases - genetics; Horses; Sarcoid; Sarcoidosis - genetics; Sarcoidosis - veterinary; Segregation analysis; Skin Neoplasms - genetics; Skin Neoplasms - veterinary; Segregation analysis; Heritability; Sarcoid; Breeding; Horse
• ISSN: 1090-0233; 1532-2971
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2013.09.053

The mode of inheritance for susceptibility to equine sarcoid disease (ES) remains unknown. The objectives of this study were to analyse a large sample of the Franches-Montagnes (FM) horse population and investigate the heritability and mode of inheritance for susceptibility to ES. Horses were clinically examined for the presence of sarcoid tumours. A standardized examination protocol and client questionnaire were used and a pedigree- and subsequent segregation-analysis for the ES trait performed. To investigate the mode of inheritance, five models were evaluated and compared in a hierarchical way. The analyses reveal that variation in susceptibility to ES is best explained by a model incorporating polygenic variation. The possible effect of a major gene, such as specific equine leukocyte antigen alleles, is unlikely, but cannot be ruled-out entirely. The heritability of the phenotype on the observation scale for the trait ‘affected with ES’ was estimated to be 8%. A corrected value for the heritability on a liability scale was estimated at 21% and it is therefore possible to estimate breeding values for ES. The arguments against the practical implementation of an estimated breeding value in a multifactorial condition like ES are discussed.