Genetic history of dog domestication

Genetic history of dog domestication

Author: PNAS December 8, 2025 Duration: 15:23

Genetic history of dog domestication

Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Learn the behind-the-scenes story of work published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), plus a broad range of scientific news about discoveries that affect the world around us.

In this episode, researchers explore the impact of domestication on dog genetics and behavior.

In this episode, we cover:
•[00:00] Introduction
•[01:00] Greger Larson explains how the history of gene flow between dogs and their wild relatives differs from what we know about other domestic species.
•[02:38] Audrey Lin finds that low levels of wolf ancestry are found in almost two thirds of dog breeds.
•[04:18] Linus Girdland Flink documents evidence of two genetic wolves on a remote Scandinavian island that may have been under human control.
•[06:13] Clément Car explores how the mating systems of free-ranging village dogs could provide insight into canine domestication
•[07:43] Katia Bougiouri explains how she used a statistical method to improve ancient genomes and what her results reveal about the history of inbreeding in dogs.
•[09:21] Lachie Scarsbrook explains how he used museum specimens to reconstruct the history of inbreeding in German Shepherd Dogs.
•[11:10] Eleanor Raffan analyzes genetic data and owner-submitted behavioral questionaries from 1,343 golden retrievers.
•[12:54] Kathryn Lord finds that genetic testing cannot accurately predict canine behaviors.
•[14:25] Final thoughts and conclusion.

About Our Guest:
Greger Larson 
Professor 
University of Oxford

Audrey Lin 
Gerstner Postdoctoral Scholar
American Museum of Natural History

Linus Girdland Flink 
Lecturer 
University of Aberdeen

Clément Car 
Postdoctoral Researcher
University of Gdańsk

Katia Bougiouri 
Postdoctoral Researcher
University of Copenhagen

Lachie Scarsbrook
Postdoctoral Researcher
University of Oxford, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich

Eleanor Raffan 
University Associate Professor 
University of Cambridge

Kathryn Lord
Postdoctoral fellow 
University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School

View related content here: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2528616122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2421768122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2421759122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2421756122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2416980122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2421755122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2421757122
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2421752122

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Tune into PNAS Science Sessions for a direct line to the people shaping modern science. Produced by PNAS, this podcast offers more than just summaries of published research; it’s where you hear the candid, often personal stories behind the headlines. Each episode features concise conversations with the researchers themselves-from emerging voices to established Academy members-alongside the policymakers whose decisions are informed by this work. You’ll get a genuine sense of the questions that drive these experts, the unexpected hurdles they face in their labs and field studies, and why their findings matter right now. The scope is deliberately wide, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of science itself, covering discoveries that range from microscopic processes to planetary-scale phenomena. This isn't about dry lectures, but about capturing the human endeavor of investigation. For anyone curious about how science actually unfolds and wants to understand the context of breakthroughs as they happen, this podcast serves as an essential, engaging resource. It connects the dots between a published paper in a prestigious journal and the real-world implications that ripple out from it.
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