In the initial study, Royal administered the investigational drug to 130 research dogs. Halioua said the company has shown that it is possible to reduce IGF-1 levels in large dogs to levels seen in medium-sized dogs. Both dogs had loose stools for a day or two after the injection, but no major side effects have been observed since then, Hariua said.
To examine the drug’s impact on lifespan, the company plans a large-scale study starting in 2024 or 2025 that will enroll about 1,000 large and giant breed dogs at least 7 years old. . Each person receives either the experimental drug or a placebo.
Halioua said the company aims to have the drug on the market by 2026. But first, Royal needs to prove to the FDA, which regulates both human and veterinary drugs, that the injection is safe and that the drug can be manufactured reliably. At that point, the FDA can grant conditional approval. This is a temporary authorization that is valid for five years and allows the drug to be sold by prescription. In the meantime, Royal will collect efficacy data and apply for full approval.
Royal is also working on two other drugs. There is a pill version for large and giant dogs, and a pill version for older dogs of all breeds.
Danica Banash, a veterinary geneticist at the University of California, Davis, who specializes in canine genetics, says IGF-1 is just one factor thought to be associated with a dog’s size and lifespan. “I think it’s a little premature to make that a goal. We know that small dogs live longer than large dogs, but we don’t know how much of that is due to the effects of IGF-1. “I don’t know if that’s the case,” she says.
in Research published last monthBanash and her colleagues have identified a gene called Physioglycans, which is another possible factor in dogs’ longevity. ERBB4. A study of more than 300 Golden Retrievers, comparing DNA taken from blood samples from dogs that were still alive at age 14 and dogs that died before age 12, found that dogs with certain genetic mutations were more likely to They were found to have lived longer, with an average survival of 13.5 years. compared to 11.6 years. Professor Banash cautioned that the study was only carried out in one breed, and it is unclear whether these mutations are associated with longevity in other breeds of dogs.
of ERBB4 The gene is the dog version HER4a human gene closely related to HER2, is associated with cancer. Research into dog genes could have implications for human health. Researchers are also testing new cancer treatments in dogs in hopes that these treatments will help people.
Giving a healthy dog an experimental drug is different from treating a sick dog. Banash said Royal’s drug must meet high safety standards so owners can feel confident giving it to their pets. She also thinks the drug would need to show more than a few months of life extension before people would want to buy it for their dogs. “As a pet owner, I think it would be great if it was more than a year. I think people would be really interested in that,” she says.
Linda Rose says humans owe it to dogs to compensate for the genetic misfortunes inherited over hundreds of years of breeding. “We’ve bred dogs with problems because we want them to look and act a certain way,” she says. “It’s up to us to think about how we can help.”