Mode of inheritance of Samoyed hereditary glomerulopathy: an animal model for hereditary nephritis in humans.

The pedigree of a line of Samoyed dogs with Samoyed hereditary glomerulopathy (SHG) was investigated to determine the mode of inheritance. Sixty percent of males were affected with severe renal disease that progressed to renal failure before 15 months of age. In contrast, female carriers showed less severe involvement and their disease did not progress to renal failure. This pattern is consistent with the inheritance of an X-linked dominant gene. A similar mode of inheritance has been postulated in some families with hereditary nephritis. Further similarities between SHG in dogs and hereditary nephritis in humans have been demonstrated previously in clinical and renal morphologic studies. The present study supports the view that this line of Samoyed dogs would be an appropriate model for studying the human disease.