Undertaking the Bernese HS Test and utilising the HSIMS Database

The Histiocytic Sarcoma test is referred to as a Predicitve test for breeders. This essentially means it does not give a specific result but produces a probability estimate to assist breeding decisions. Even good use of the test can never mean your puppies will not develop ‘HS’ but the idea is that if enough breeders use it as a tool to reduce the likelihood of HS occurring in their puppies then the breed as a whole will benefit. It has been broadly welcomed by the breed as something to fight back against the curse of HS but, chiefly because of the non specific results, some remain critical of it and the revolutionary nature of the test has also drawn some scepticism. Most breed people are just happy to have something to proactively tackle HS with and accept that just how effective a tool it can be will only become clear with time and is totally dependent on the amount of take up. The test is totally intended for the use of breeders and there is no real value in non breeding dogs being tested. Some will use it as part of the assessment process in deciding whether to use a dog for breeding or not, which is a great and responsible thing to do and a good sign for puppy buyers to see in their prospective puppy provider.

Good use of the test is dependent on two aspects, actually taking the test itself and then use of the HSIMS database to maximise its practical usefulness.

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How to take the test – A Step by step guide 

As previously stated this can appear a slightly confusing process when first undertaken, it is actually quite logical when broken down and the purpose of each step is clear but the Antagene web site could be more helpful.  The official explanation and instructions maybe lose a little bit in translation so here is my attempt to make it easier for newcomers to the process as well as steer users through the Antagene process and web site.

The submission process is all done on line from the web site of Antagene, a French genetic services company. Their home page currently looks like this

You may need to click on the language button in the top right hand corner to see the English version.

If it is your first time using the test then you need to submit a “Memorandum of Agreement” which you can find  via the “Medias/Document” tab.

Download and print off two copies, one is to keep for yourself and the other needs completing and signing and must be sent with the first sample you send. After this you would not need to submit it for any future samples as long as your samples are sent in the same name.

While you are in the Documents section also look at these documents and download them all.

This is Antagene’s explanation of the test and how it works.

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This is the form referred to below and must be completed as directed below

This is how to pay

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This form explains how to submit your sample from the UK into Europe (see below).

Filling in the submissions form..

Sections 1-4 You should tick the “Screening or Breeding” box in section 1, invoice to owner, and suggest the “Payment on Invoice” receipt box under section 4 as then you do not pay until you know your sample has been received. (If completing the form in preparation for a sample taken at a club event then tick “If different” and give the club’s name). There is also the option to contribute a sample just for research without paying an Antagene fee. This means you receive no feedback but your dog’s Histio status is recorded as part of breed research.

Sections 5 and 6 are straightforward (‘Identification No means microchip)

In section 7 your response varies depending on your request

IF you are purely requesting the HS test then you tick that option at €120

IF you are taking the Genetic Check Up, as most Bernese people do, then you tick that option at €168.   This is where the web site is confusing as, nowhere does it say but, for Bernese Mountain Dogs the Genetic Check up includes the HS test as well as the other items listed here …..

…….. most of which are not of great interest to most people in our breed,  but the Degenerative Myelopathy is for both mutations that affect our breed and you do receive two different certificates. Again, although it is mentioned on the form, it is not made clear here but you do need a validated blood sample, not a mouth swab, to undertake the HS test in a Bernese over 3 months of age.

Going back to the form – I have been assured by Antagene that it always includes the HS test for Bernese so I always tick the €168 option, but I do feel better if I also write “incl HS Test” in the space just to the right of “Genetic Check Up”

You are now ready to  take your dog to your vet. You will need to take with you the dog (!) and the partially complete sample certificate to your vet along with the dog.

As things are not easy to locate on Antagene’s web site their guide to using the test has been downloaded and is offered here.

THE VET – can then check the microchip of dog matches the one you have given on the certificate and take the blood sample, it is usually the case with most vets dealing with our breed there is no need for shaving to take the blood sample. There is no spinning or other treatment of the blood required by the vet, it just needs placing in an EDTA tube to preserve it which is very standard veterinary procedure. The vet needs to complete his/her section of the form confirming the dog’s identity via the microchip and date of the blood taking, entering his or her own credentials and signing and stamping the form to validate it. Whether submitting more than one sample or not,  the vet needs to mark each EDTA tube with a number or letters to tie it to a single sample certificate also recording this on the form in the allocated place “Tube No.”. Again, all fairly routine, good careful practice.

Unfortunately, since the implementation of Brexit, a biological sample going into Europe needs a French Customs document to accompany it. As the document mentioned above explains, this can be arranged via Antagene once you have your sample and must be visible and available on the outside of the package, inside a clear stick accessible and resealable envelope, as well as within it. People do take a chance on sending them without this but you are taking the risk of the package being seized and destroyed  at customs.

The whole lot should be packaged up and posted to the address given in France. After a bad experience with a batch of samples sent by the club which were lost in the French postal system, it may be better to pay a little more and use a direct courier company.

If you, quite understandably, find this a bit confusing then why not bring your dog along to a club event where testing is being offered and you will only need to provide some basic paperwork and everything else will be done for you. You will be able to get assistance with the process and have things explained to you as well as saving a significant amount off the overall cost both in monetary terms and the effort involved.

What happens next?

Between a few days and even a week or more after posting you should receive an email acknowledgement from Antagene of your sample being received and presumably any queries with the documentation would be raised at this point. About a week or more later you will receive your test result in the form of an email with a certificate attached. You can file the certificate however you like, electronically or print it off and file it conventionally. Depending on the post system and week-ends, the whole process takes around 14-21 days from postage.

What can I do next?

You will have your certificate with your dog’s grade or A B or C on it. You can leave it at that if you wish and originally, for several years, that was all there was to do. You were just advised not to mate a C grade to a C grade but also absolutely not to discount C grades from the gene pool completely, just use them sensibly.

Use of HSIMS

However, since February 2019 you have the fantastic HSIMS database available to use, Histiocytic Sarcoma Index Mate Selection, which is a database offered by Antagene. This enables you to check your dog or bitch in a simulated mating with every other dog of the opposite sex who is made ‘public’ on the system in your own country and around the world and for every potential mating you will get a percentage breakdown of predicted A B or C grades for the litter. Obviously to improve prospects for your own puppies and the breed as a whole, you should be looking at the most number of A grades and the lowest number of C grades.

The system is only available to people who have put a dog onto it, the general public cannot view it for example and breeders who have not submitted at least one dog for testing do not have access to it. You have to have at least one dog on the system to be able to use it. Your tested dogs will only be added to HSIMS if you positively go online and click to allow this. Most people choose to test their dogs, put them into view on HSIMS And leave them there for all to see, others just put them on for a few minutes to do whatever simulations they wish to do and then remove them again. It is that simple and just a matter of ticking or unticking a box on the database. It is completely personal choice how open you wish to be.

Another important point for some is that even if you choose to put your dogs on the system no one else can see their grades, only you can view your own dog’s grades. Other people can only put them into a simulation with their dog or bitch and see the resulting prediction.

HOW TO USE HSIMS

By utilising Antagene for this test you will have opened an account with them, you need to go to their home page which looks like this ….

…. and click on the link in the top right corner to  “My Account”.

I think the first time you do this you have to set up your account with a password but, just like most other sites, once set up it is just a click to get into it and you just have to further click on a “LOGIN” icon. This then gives you a list of all your dogs you have ever tested with Antagene, for HS or anything else. Look carefully and you will see some tabs with “MY ANIMALS” highlighted, look 4 tabs to the right of this and click on “HSIMS”

This opens up the HSIMS database access for your tested animals. You will see your tested dog(s) listed at the top of the screen. The right hand column here will have a small plus sign in a blue circle. You need to click on this to add your dogs into the viewable database. If you do not do this you will not be able to use the database. Be aware though once you have clicked this to turn it into a green tick, other people on the system will be able to perform a simulation with your dog or bitch and one of their own dogs. If you wish you can enter your dog on the database, do some simulations and then remove it so it is only open to other people for a very limited time. If this concerns you then just consider how likely it is that someone would be using the database at exactly the same time as you and, with almost 2,500 to look at will look at your dog in those few minutes you are working. As I said above most people just leave their dogs available for anyone to view.

Once you have ticked to confirm your dog is ‘shared on the HSIMS tool’ you are ready to go. Scroll down or look down depending on the viewer you are using, to see your dog listed. If you have more than one you wil have them listed in two charts, the second being apparently identical but this one you will change. You may want to simulate two of your own dogs together in this case you click on the little blue down arrow against a dog in one table and a bitch in the other. This shows each dog at the bottom of the page and you just click on ‘start the simulation’ and within a few brief moments you have your first HSIMS result. You can opt to have this downloaded or just make a note.

To search further afield than your own dogs you need to click on ‘Define your search’ and you can easily use the search tool, first clicking on ‘Dogs of outside kennels shared on HSIMS Tool’, then reduce it to males or females depending on what you are looking for, and then you can use the boxes to reduce further if you wish OR you can just pick a country (or several) in the adjacent list. Note that due to the amount of dogs tested France is split down further into regions. Press ‘Launch search’ and you instantly get a whole load of dogs to look at. You can the click on any of these in turn to run simulations against your own dog or bitch. Note that you never see the dog’s own grade and the only additional information you get is the dog’s pet name (call name), date of birth and the name of the owner in case you wanted to contact them.

Summary

Like most things it takes far longer to describe than actually do, it really is simple so anyone who says it is too complicated to use really hasn’t tried very hard. I have heard of people spending hours listing results for their bitches against various dogs around the world, which was reassuring that we aren’t the only ones!! Remember you cannot fix the world in one generation so don’t expect to find a dog for you bitch that gives you 100% A grades. You will have to work with what you have. You also need to consider this test against all the other things we have to test in our breed such as hips, elbows, DM, inbreeding etc before you even begin on breed type and the most important factor of temperament. No one is saying this test should be the absolute guide to breeding choices in Bernese. However, when deaths from Histio are around 25% in most countries it has to have some priority in any breeder who cares for the breed. It moves the breed slowly in the right direction but, whether you are a puppy buyer or a breeder,  don’t expect miracles in a single generation. The aim is slow impprovement from infomred choices.

If you need any further help I will be happy to try and assist.

Good Luck and thank you for doing the ‘right thing’.

Steve Green

health@bernese.co.uk