Being a dog lover can be in your genes

It may be that a genetic explanation explains why John Wick (played in the Keanu Reeves movie series) cared so much about his puppy that he embarked on a murderous outburst after he had been in the house. a team of murderous men killed the innocent.

OK, maybe not. But scientists have recently discovered that people who love dogs can do so partly because of their DNA.

Previous studies had shown that exposure of dogs during childhood could create lasting affinity for the canine company, but researchers wondered if genetic factors could also play a role. To find out, they examined data from more than 85,000 twins listed in the Swedish Twin Registry, the world's largest register of twins, looking for genetic clues that may be related to the possession of one's own. dog in adulthood. [10 Things You Didn’t Know About Dogs]

Twin studies offer scientists an opportunity to compare the genetic and behavioral data of two individuals sharing their entire genome (monozygotic twins) or 50% of their genes (dizygotic twins). This can help researchers determine whether certain behaviors are the result of environmental factors or are likely to be rooted in DNA.

For this new study, scientists have consulted extensive data on twins and 15 years of documentation on the possession of a dog. (Sweden requires all dogs to be officially registered with the Swedish Board of Agriculture, while genealogy dogs may also be registered with the Swedish Kennel Club.) Of the 85,542 twins assessed in the Swedish Kennel Club. study, 8,503 people owned it.

The authors of the study then created computer models to identify, among the twins, models that could represent a genetic influence or environmental impacts shaping a permanent attachment to dogs. The researchers found that genetics was slightly more predictive of having a dog in adulthood than the environment; the genetic contribution to the possession of a dog was about 51% in men and about 57% in women.

"These results are important because they suggest that the supposed health benefits of owning a dog, reported in some studies, may be partially explained by the different genetics of the people studied," co-authored Carri Westgarth, Interactional Lecturer. animal-man at the university. from Liverpool to the UK, said in a statement.

For example, scientists reported in 2017 that owning a dog could reduce the risk of heart disease by providing emotional support to people and making them do more exercise. However, new findings suggest that genetics may also partly explain dog owners' physical and mental health trends.

Although the study did not identify the genes responsible for these warm feelings towards the dogs, she demonstrated "that genetics and the environment play an equal role in determining of the dog's property, "said co-author of the study, Patrik Magnusson, associate professor of epidemiology at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics of the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.

"The next obvious step is to try to identify the genetic variants that affect that choice and their connection to personality traits and other factors, such as allergy," Magnusson said in his statement. communicated.

The results were published online May 17 in the journal Scientific Reports.

Originally published on Science live.