Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Male Pug with female chromosomes and inguinal gonad mass
By Rota, A et al.·Published in Reproduction in domestic animals = Zuchthygiene·2010·Department of Animal Pathology, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: The case of an Sry-negative XX male Pug with an inguinal gonad.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A Pug was brought to the vet because of a reddish mass that looked like an enlarged clitoris, which was protruding from its private area. Upon examination, the vet found a gonad in the dog's left inguinal region and confirmed through surgery that the dog had both male and female reproductive structures. Genetic testing showed that the dog had a female genetic makeup (XX), but its gonads were functioning like male ones. This unusual condition, known as XX male syndrome, is not fully understood, and no specific genetic cause has been identified.
People also search for: Pug with genital mass · intersex dog symptoms · XX male syndrome in dogs · dog reproductive issues · what to do if my dog has a mass.
Abstract
A case of intersexuality in a Pug that was bought as a male in a pet shop is described. The dog was presented at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, University of Turin, for a reddish mass protruding from the prepuce. The mass had the aspect of an enlarged clitoris, with a caudoventral direction and a dorsal urethral ostium. A gonad was palpable in the left inguinal region. Laparotomy confirmed ultrasound detection of an abdominal uterine structure together with the right gonad. The histology of both gonads was similar, showing an exclusively masculine character, with seminiferous tubules lined only by Sertoli cells; the uterus showed a normal histological structure. Karyological analysis revealed a female karyotype (78,XX), and polymerase chain reaction showed the absence of Sry. The diagnosis was an XX male. The pathogenesis of the XX sex reversal syndrome in dogs is not completely understood, as Sry, the master gene regulating testis differentiation, is not present; to date, no genetic cause has been identified for this phenotypic condition in dogs. This case is unusual because the dog showed an inguinal testis, implying a partial activity of the mechanisms leading to abdominal testis translocation along a gubernaculum and transinguinal migration.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19210664/