Small dogs emerged in the Middle East

2010/07/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Genetika
• Geografia

A group of genetics from the University of California has concluded that small dogs were born in the Middle East, following the gene that separates large and small dogs. It has been proven that all small dogs have a certain variant of the IGF1 gene, while in large dogs this variant rarely appears. This variant has not been found in wild cannids, except in some Middle Eastern wolves. Being the same variant in all of them, researchers say that small dogs, a single ancestor, almost probably emerged from these wolves.