Data from: Effect of canine oxytocin receptor gene polymorphism on the successful training of drug detection dogs

Drug detection dogs can be trained to locate various prohibited drugs with targeted odors, and they play an important role in interdiction of drug smuggling in human society. Recent studies provide the interesting hypothesis that the oxytocin system serves as a biological basis for co-evolution between dogs and humans. Here, we offer the new possibility that genetic variation of the canine oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene may regulate the success of a dog’s training to become a drug detection dog. A total of 340 Labrador Retriever dogs that were trained to be drug detection dogs in Japan were analyzed. We genotyped an exonic SNP (rs8679682) in the OXTR gene and compared the training success rate of dogs with different genotypes. We also asked dog trainers in the training facility to evaluate subjective personality assessment scores for each dog, and examined how each dog’s training success was related to those scores. A significant effect of the OXTR genotype on the success of the dogs’ training was found, with a higher proportion of dogs carrying the C allele (T/C and C/C genotypes) being successful candidates than dogs carrying the T/T genotype. Dog personality scores of Training Focus (Factor 1) were positively correlated with an increased likelihood that a dog would successfully complete training. Although the molecular mechanism of the OXTR gene and its functional pathway related to dog behavior remains unknown, our findings suggest that canine OXTR gene variants may regulate individual differences between dogs in their responsiveness to training for drug detection.

缉毒犬（Drug detection dogs）可通过靶向气味训练定位各类违禁毒品，在人类社会的毒品走私缉查工作中发挥着重要作用。近期研究提出了一项有趣的假说：催产素系统（oxytocin system）是犬类与人类协同进化的生物学基础。本研究提出全新可能性：犬类催产素受体基因（canine oxytocin receptor gene, OXTR）的遗传变异，或许能够调控缉毒犬的训练成效。本研究共分析了340只在日本接受缉毒犬训练的拉布拉多寻回犬（Labrador Retriever）。我们对OXTR基因的一个外显子单核苷酸多态性（single nucleotide polymorphism, SNP, rs8679682）进行了基因分型，并比较了不同基因型犬只的训练成功率。我们还邀请训练机构的训犬师对每只犬只进行主观性格评分，并分析了犬只训练成功率与这些评分之间的关联。研究发现，OXTR基因型对犬只训练成效具有显著影响：携带C等位基因（T/C及C/C基因型）的犬只，其训练合格比例显著高于携带T/T基因型的犬只。“训练专注度”（因子1）的性格评分，与犬只顺利完成训练的概率呈显著正相关。尽管目前OXTR基因的分子机制及其与犬类行为相关的功能通路仍未明确，但本研究结果表明，犬类OXTR基因变异或许能够调控缉毒训练中犬只训练响应性的个体差异。