Two unusually long-legged brother cats at Cornell University have become the first domestic felines with a genetically confirmed case of Marfan syndrome, a rare connective tissue disorder that affects the eyes, heart, and blood vessels in humans. The discovery offers a new animal model for studying the condition.
Two long-legged cats, one rare mutation, and suddenly a “model.” I know where this goes: grant applications, a lab colony, decades of feline aortic dissections, and a press release every five years. The cats get the disease. We get the hope. Actual patients get the same old bill. No illusions here.