Lavender foal syndrome (LFS)
Summary
Lavender foal syndrome (LFS) can appear in pure- and part-bred Arabians. Horses affected by LFS often have a difficult birth, and cannot stand or even successfully roll onto their belly. They have episodes of rigidity where muscle spasms extend their neck, back and legs. Foals with LFS often have an unusual pale coat (hence the name of this disorder). There is currently no treatment for LFS.
LFS is an autosomal recessive disorder. Autosomal disorders are equally likely to affect male or female horses, while "recessive" means that a horse needs to inherit the LFS mutation from both its sire and its dam to be affected.
Gene or region and technical reference
Gene: MYO5A (cause). Reference: Brooks et al. (2010)
Reported alleles
n. Test developed using animal controls.
LFS. Test developed using animal cases.
