Credit: Photo: Eniko Kubinyi / Eötvös Loránd University
Two recent papers from Hungarian researchers highlight the so far underrated relevance of pet dog biobanking in molecular research and introduce their initiative to make pioneering steps in this field. The Hungarian Canine Brain and Tissue Bank (CBTB) was established by the research team of the Senior Family Dog Project in 2017, following the examples of human tissue banks. In a recent paper, the team reports findings, which would not have been possible without the CBTB, and may augment further progress in dog aging and biomarker research.
Even though dogs have a much shorter average lifespan than humans, the aging path of the two species has remarkable similarities. Hence our best friends have attracted the attention of aging researchers. Most importantly, dogs tend to develop similar age-related diseases as humans do, including dementia, which is not typical for most other animal species. However, not every human or dog is affected by age-related ailments to the same extent. The ability to foresee the individual tendencies and provide interventions, which can shift aging to a healthier track, is the holy grail of aging research. The fact that dogs mirror human aging in many aspects makes them highly promising preclinical models to test interventions and understand the factors that determine aging. These goals, however, require a deeper insight into the microscopic levels of canine aging as well.