Ticks may no longer cause as many dog deaths following discoveries of new toxins and treatments by UQ researchers.

A specific toxin in tick venom causing heart failure if not treated can be cured in most cases according to doctoral candidate Fiona Campbell and her supervisor Dr Rick Atwell from the School of Veterinary Science.

Vets will be able to use existing heart medications to save the lives of severely tick-paralysed dogs and achieve an estimated two-to four-fold reduction in mortality.

Around 20,000 dogs are affected by tick paralysis each year in Australia, at an estimated cost of $4­$8 million.

A large-scale study of tick paralysis in dogs was conducted with the aid of veterinary company Merial in 42 clinics around Australia. More than 600 dogs were examined and heart failure showed up as the complicating cause of about 80 percent of deaths.

With this clue and some previous UQ research, Ms Campbell was able to discover that a specific toxin was damaging dog's hearts. In some cases, the toxin caused critical damage over a two- to three-day period at the start of the intoxication.

"The symptoms we saw were similar to other causes of heart failure in dogs. Findings also pointed to a condition seen in human heart disease called long QT syndrome, a type of heartbeat irregularity that can cause sudden death. The similarity to a human condition opens potential for this veterinary discovery to lead to treatments for controlling irregular hearts in humans," Ms Campbell said.

However, the most immediate impact of this research is that vets now know they can use medicines and therapies appropriate for heart failure to save those dogs that do not respond to existing treatments.

Dr Rick Atwell www.uq.edu.au/uqresearchers/researcher/atwellrb.html

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