Tufts researcher wins AKC award for diet-associated DCM discovery

Lisa Freeman, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), of Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University has been named the winner of the AKC Canine Health Foundation’s inaugural Canine Health Discovery of the Year Award for her research into diet-associated dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), the foundation announced on December 16, 2025.¹

The discovery offers a biologically plausible mechanism to study further and a way for veterinarians to prioritize early detection, referral, and reporting. Freeman’s work is a finalist for the AKC Canine Health Foundation’s Canine Health Discovery of the Year Award, a recognition that highlights the potential clinical impact of this finding.¹

Freeman’s team identified a urinary lipid metabolite that is elevated in dogs with diet-associated DCM and that is consistent with phospholipidosis, a cellular accumulation of phospholipids that can damage tissue. The finding offers a biologically plausible mechanism linking certain diets that include high amounts of pulses, such as peas and lentils, to cardiac injury in some dogs.²

The Discovery Award recognizes a single research advance each year that has strong potential to change canine health. The prize for the winner includes up to $75,000 in potential research funding plus a $10,000 cash award, which Freeman intends to apply to continued study of diet-associated DCM. Freeman was honored alongside 2 other finalists at the AKC CHF Canines & Cocktails gala on December 11, 2025.¹

Freeman said she was honored to have the research recognized by the inaugural award and expressed appreciation for the AKC Canine Health Foundation’s support. Foundation leadership said the project exemplifies the type of bold, rigorous work the award was created to spotlight.¹

In the study described in dvm360’s earlier coverage, the research team measured higher normalized urine concentrations of a lipid metabolite known as di-22:6-bis(monoacylglycerol)phosphate, or di-22:6-BMP, in dogs with DCM that had been eating pulse-rich diets. Elevated di-22:6-BMP is compatible with phospholipidosis, which gives researchers a testable hypothesis about how diet might contribute to myocardial damage in susceptible animals. The urinary test is currently research only, but it provides a measurable signal to guide future investigations and prioritization of diagnostic efforts.²

RELATED: Urinary biomarker links diet-associated DCM to phospholipidosis

Veterinarians have been urged to include a detailed nutritional history and body and muscle condition assessment when evaluating patients for cardiac disease, because diet-associated DCM has been reported across a variety of breeds and dietary formulations.² Freeman’s findings support that practical advice by supplying a molecular link that could help distinguish diet-associated cases and guide next steps in prevention and treatment.^1-2

The AKC Canine Health Foundation said it will use the award and its publicity to stimulate further research and collaboration across the veterinary research community.¹ For clinicians, the immediate takeaway is to take a thorough diet history and consider diet as one potential factor when evaluating dogs with DCM.²

References

1. AKC Canine Health Foundation. AKC Canine Health Foundation Announces Dr. Lisa Freeman as Recipient of Inaugural Canine Health Discovery of the Year Award. News release. December 16, 2025. Accessed December 16, 2025.
2. Alaburda B. Urinary biomarker links diet-associated DCM to phospholipidosis. dvm360. December 11, 2025. Accessed December 16, 2025.