A horse that cannot sweat at all or that doesn't sweat enough is suffering from a condition called anhidrosis. This condition occurs more frequently in some breeds and among horses with a familial history of the disease.
The inability to sweat is a welfare concern as the horse is often not able to cool itself effectively in hot and humid environments. Research out of the University of Florida suggests that there may be a heritable component to the disease.
Drs. Samantha Brooks and Laura Patterson Rosa used the Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) to look for genomic associations with anhidrosis. Using information from 200 horses, they discovered a strongly supported candidate region containing the KCNE4 gene.
Sequence analysis showed a single variation on the gene that encodes a portion of a potassium channel protein with possible sweat gland outflow may alter KCNE4 function.
This research suggests that there is some heritability to the condition, though many more studies are needed to determine whether breeding a mare with anhidrosis to a stallion that doesn't have the condition would “cancel out” the anhidrosis susceptibility.
Read more at EQUUS magazine.
The post No Sweat: Study Suggests Anhidrosis May Be Heritable Condition appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
