Please Read
Could
your twitching dog be the clue to curing a deadly childhood disease?
Most
of you reading the title of this article will probably frown their eyebrows, but
please read on, because your dog could be able to provide the clue needed to
treat a terrible neurologic disease that strikes children down hard, in the
prime of their lives.
Two
experienced veterinary
neurologists, Dr. Susan Fitzmaurice and Dr. Clare Rusbridge have been confronted
in the last few years with Miniature Wirehaired Dachshunds having epileptic
seizures after the age of 7. The fits were provoked by flashing lights, watching
television or if approached in sunlight. Sue and Clare went to great lengths to
establish a diagnosis for these dogs and with the help of two veterinary
pathologists (Dr. Diane Shelton, San Diego, California, and Dr. Robin Franklin,
Cambridge, England) they came to the conclusion that this disease was the same
as the deadly human disease, Lafora’s Progressive Myoclonus Epilepsy.
Fortunately, the disease in the dogs is much less severe than its human
counterpart.
My
name is Berge Minassian, I am a paediatric neurologist and scientist dedicated
to understanding, and hopefully one day curing this devastating condition. This
disease, in humans, strikes otherwise completely normal children, just as they
are entering adolescence. Once the fits start, they do not stop, despite our
best efforts. The seizures get worse and worse until they kill the child.
Because of the onset of the disease after 10 yars of age, many of the families,
not knowing what is brewing in their first child, have had further children, who
witness the ordeal of their sibling, only to themselves then starting to succumb
to the condition. Our research laboratory is part of the large Center for
Applied Genomics at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada and is
headed by Dr. Stephen Scherer. This is the same lab which was involved in such
seminal discoveries as the gene for Cystic Fibrosis. We have already discovered
one gene for Lafora's disease. Surprisingly, we also discovered that in humans,
there is a second gene, which also causes this horrible disease. This second
Lafora's disease gene has been very hard to find in humans. We now know that
this second Lafora's disease gene is the same gene causing the problem in the
Miniature Wirehaired Dachshunds. If we can find the Dachshund Lafora gene, then
that would be a major leap forward in unravelling the biology of this disease in
humans. We would be much closer to a fuller understanding of what is going on,
and hence much closer to a potential cure for our children.
We are planning NO EXPERIMENTS OF ANY KIND on the dogs. What we need is a little bit of blood, that is all. If you have a Miniature Wirehaired Dachshund who has fits, THEN PLEASE CONTACT US, and allow your puppy to give us a little bit of blood. Epilepsy is common in dogs, and there are many forms of epilepsy. Please contact us only if your dog is a miniature wirehaired dachshund. Many children in the future will look back at this and will be eternally grateful. Dr. Susan Fitzmaurice (in Woking) and Dr. Clare Rusbridge (in Wimbledon) will be in charge of the blood collection in the U.K. All reasonable costs will be covered by our research funds. Their addresses are below. Any of you can contact me any time, and I will do what I can to answer your questions, and help coordinate this effort. My full address is also below.
Finally,
do remember that the disease is much milder in the dogs. The dogs have an
altogether normal life apart from the fits late as they age.
I
thank you wholeheartedly,
Berge
INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM
Additional Information on Lafora's Disease
Berge A Minassian MD CM, FRCP(C)
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Division of Neurology Hospital for Sick Children 555 University Ave, Toronto Canada email : bminass@sickkids.ca
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Clare Rusbridge BVMS, DipECVN, MRCVS
Neurologist Stone Lion Veterinary Centre 41 High Street Wimbledon Common London SW19 5AU email : neuro.vet@btinternet.com Telephone 0208 946 4228 |
Susan Fitzmaurice BVMS, DipECVN, MRCVS
125-129 Chertsey Road Woking Surrey GU 21 5BP email : WeyReferrals@btinternet.com Telephone 01483 729194 |
Wirehaired Dachshund Club UK
Laura Sexton email : laurasexton@wirehaireddachshundclub.co.uk Fay Hutchings email : fayhutchings@wirehaireddachshundclub.co.uk Miniature Dachshund Club UK Jack Boulger email : robabuja@aol.com
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