Inheritance of Polycystic Kidney Disease in Persian Cats

Polycystic kidney disease in Persian cats culminates in chronic renal failure after a variable clinical course. An affected 6-year-old Persian cat was used to establish a colony of cats with polycystic kidney disease. In affected cats, cysts could be detected by ultrasonography as early as 7 weeks of age. Absence of cysts on ultrasound examination at 6 months of age was correlated with absence of polycystic kidney disease at necropsy. Both males and females were affected and, of progeny from affected x unaffected crosses, 42% were affected and 58% were unaffected. In affected x affected crosses, 73% of progeny were affected and 27% were unaffected. These results are compatible with autosomal dominant inheritance of this trait. Polycystic kidney disease in Persian cats resembles autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) in human beings, and represents a valuable animal model of the human disease.