Pug Dog Encephalitis
Pug Dog Encephalitis (PDE) also know as necrotising meningoencephalitis (NME), is an auto-immune inflammatory disease of the central nervous system that is usually progressive and fatal. Signs of PDE can include seizures, depression, ataxia, abnormal gait and blindness. The disease is believed to be an autosomal-recessive condition. This means that dogs that inherit two copies of a PDE gene mutation (one from its mother and one from its father) will have an increased risk of developing the condition. This disease is not fully understood and it is believed that environmental factors or other genetic influences can also contribute to whether a dog becomes affected. Current research suggests that 12.5% of dogs that have two copies of the PDE gene variant will develop PDE.
There is a DNA test available to check the risk of developing PDE, there is a list of accepted laboratories offering the test.
(List taken from the Kennel Club website – correct as of June 2024 – click here)
– Canine Genetic Testing (UK)
– Embark (USA)
– Genomia (Czech Republic)
– Laboklin (UK)
– MyDogDNA/Wisdom Panel (Finland)
– Orivet (Australia)
– Paw Print Genetics (USA)
– University of California – Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory (USA)
– Van Haeringen (Holland)
– AnimalLabs (Croatia) (verification in progress, subject to change)
– Animal DNA Diagnostics (UK) (verification in progress, subject to change)
– Animal Genetics (UK) (verification in progress, subject to change)
– University of Utrecht (Holland) (verification in progress, subject to change)
Tested dogs will be recorded on The Kennel Club’s systems as at “minimal risk (0)”, “minimal risk (1)” or “increased risk (2)”. The numbers assigned to each status indicate the number of copies of the PDE gene variant a dog has.
Minimal risk (0) – these dogs do not have any copies of the PDE gene variant and are at minimal risk of developing the condition
Minimal risk (1) – these dogs have one copy of the PDE gene variant, but are at minimal risk of developing the condition and may pass either one copy of the normal gene, or one copy of the abnormal gene on to future puppies
Increased risk (2) – these dogs have two copies of the PDE gene variant and have an increased risk of developing PDE. However, of these dogs, it is estimated that only 1 in 8 will ever become affected by the condition itself.