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1. Phenotypically diverse, dogs are ideal subjects for exploring the genetic bases of cognition & behavior. We combined cognitive data from #CitizenScience project @Dognition & breed-average genetic data (Parker et al. 2017) to probe the genetics of dog cognition. #AnimBehav2021
2. First, we used factor analysis to define 4 cognitive traits and asked: what proportion of the variation is explained by breed-average genetic relatedness? Inhibitory control was the most heritable, followed by communication, physical reasoning & memory. #AnimBehav2021
3. Next, we used a breed-average genome-wide association analysis to explore regions of the genome that were associated with breed differences in these traits. We identified 188 genes that were implicated in at least one of these traits. #AnimBehav2021
4. The identified genes were more likely than a random selection of genes to be highly expressed in brain tissue (in both dogs and humans), and also to have certain nervous system functions (e.g peripheral nervous system development & presynapse assembly). #AnimBehav2021
5. These results begin to illuminate the genetic underpinnings of cognitive traits & identify specific genetic variants for further research. The success of these analyses suggests that studies with paired genotypic & phenotypic data could be even more informative. #AnimBehav2021
6. Thanks to coauthors @EvanMacLean, @bharedogguy, @SMack_Lab, @_Caninski_, Josep Call, Ádám Miklósi, to the dogs who participated in @Dognition & @NSFGRFP! For more, see Gnanadesikan et al. 2020 a & b: https://rdcu.be/b4NjP & https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icaa112. #AnimBehav2021
