Bilaterally symmetric focal cortical dysplasia in a golden retriever dog

A 10-year-old golden retriever dog was referred with a 24-h history of generalized seizures. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain found no abnormalities on 3mm transverse sections and the dog was subsequently humanely destroyed. Microscopically there was bilaterally symmetrical focal disorganization of cortical grey matter within the tips of the right and left suprasylvian gyri of the temporal cortex. The focal abnormal cortical lamination was characterized by loss of pyramidal neurons with abnormal, irregular, angular, remaining neurons occasionally forming clusters, surrounded by fibrillary astrogliosis and microgliosis and vascular proliferation. These histological findings are consistent with focal cortical dysplasia, a cerebral cortical malformation that causes seizures in people, but not reported previously in the dog.