New genetic test detects faulty shar pei gene
SPAID is a spontaneously occurring auto-inflammatory disease affecting the Chinese shar pei.
Immunologists and scientists at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine Animal Health Diagnostic Center (AHDC) have developed a means of testing for the faulty gene responsible for shar pei auto-inflammatory disease (SPAID).
In collaboration with scientists in Sweden and a culmination of years of research, the equipment required for developing the test was bought with a $50,000 grant from the Chinese Shar-Pei Charitable Trust.
SPAID is a spontaneously occurring auto-inflammatory disease affecting the Chinese shar pei and is carried on a mutated gene first discovered by the team in 2011.
The droplet digital PCR test, ITHACA, measures the number of copies of the faulty gene, with dogs carrying mutations from both parents at extremely high risk. Symptoms include fever, swollen joints, ear problems, skin 'bubbles' and kidney failure.
With the majority of shar peis carrying the defective gene, it is hoped the test will decrease the chances of breeding high risk dogs.
Long standing Cornell alumna Dr Linda Tintle first began researching SPAID in the 1980s, and explained a positive result could enable owners to watch carefully for signs of the disease. It would also be used "as a breeding tool, with the aim of reducing the presence SPAID in the worldwide shar pei population."
Currently the test is available at Cornell’s AHDC and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.
The BSAVA has opened submissions for the BSAVA Clinical Research Abstracts 2026.
