Abstract

Comparative and translation medicine is of particular value within the field of inherited cardiomyopathies. Despite massive advances in understanding the functional role of mutations in human cardiomyopathies, these advances have frequently failed to translate into medical discoveries that alter patient care. One potential explanation for this failure lies in the lack of suitable translational models that adequately recapitulate human cardiovascular physiology and disease expression. The vast genetic heterogeneity that complicates human cardiomyopathy research is potentially alleviated through the study of naturally occurring large animal models of disease, where incredibly homogenous populations, like those seen in a single breed of dog or cat, may exist (Kol et al., Sci Transl Med 7:308–321, 2015; Ueda and Stern, Yale J Biol Med 90:433–448, 2017). Veterinary medicine is in a unique position to provide research resources and information that may be readily applied to human disease (Kol et al., Sci Transl Med 7:308–321, 2015). Many inherited cardiomyopathies of humans are phenotypically and genotypically similar in veterinary species and ongoing research holds promise for aiding veterinary and human patients alike (Basso et al., Circulation 109:1180–1185, 2004; Fox et al., Cardiovasc Pathol 23:28–34, 2014; Fox et al., Circulation 102:1863–1870, 2000; Kittleson et al., J Vet Cardiol 17 Suppl 1:S53–73, 2015; Ueda and Stern, Yale J Biol Med 90:433–448, 2017). This article presents the current knowledge of inherited cardiomyopathies in dogs, cats, and non-human primates, with a goal of identifying areas of translational research and future directions.