The roles of genetics and the gut microbiome in gastric dilatation volvulus in the domestic dog.

Bloat, known to veterinarians as gastric dilatation-volvulus (or GDV), is an acute, life-threatening condition that occurs at high frequency in many large and giant breeds of dogs. Any dog owner that has witnessed GDV knows it is an unbearably stressful and painful experience. Great Danes are unusually susceptible to this condition. About 37% of Great Danes will experience bloat at some time in their life, and the majority of them will die without immediate medical intervention. German Shepherds, Boxers, and many other large breeds have a lower incidence, around 3-5%, but that is still very high. Yet the causes of this condition have remained a mystery for decades. The goal of this study -- and all of our research -- is to identify the causes of bloat. That information will be essential to the development of therapies and breeding strategies to eliminate this condition. Our evidence so far indicates that specific genes of the immune system play a major role in GDV by causing changes in the gut bacterial population (microbiome), which create an unhealthy chemical environment in the gut.