Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Stem cell therapy from joint fluid for dog arthritis treatment
By Koga, Yasuhiro et al.·Published in Research in veterinary science·2025·Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: A preliminary study of synovial fluid-derived mesenchymal stromal cell therapy for canine osteoarthritis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with osteoarthritis (OA) received a new treatment using stem cells derived from their own joint fluid to see if it could help relieve their pain and improve mobility. Three healthy dogs were given an injection of these stem cells into their knee joints, while the other knee was left untreated as a control. After 90 days, the dogs showed no adverse effects, indicating that this stem cell therapy is safe. While this study focused on safety, it suggests that this treatment could be a promising option for dogs suffering from OA in the future.
People also search for: dog osteoarthritis treatment · stem cell therapy for dogs · how to help my dog with arthritis
Abstract
Dogs with osteoarthritis (OA) may benefit from stromal cell therapies, but there is a lack of such established therapies. Accordingly, we investigated the feasibility and safety of synovial fluid (SF)-derived mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) transplantation for canine OA. MSCs were isolated from SF (n = 15) or by joint lavage (JLF; n = 12) from the knee joints of dogs undergoing orthopedic surgery (n = 25), and then cultured on a dish (passage 1) and a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) nonwoven fabric scaffold (passage 2). We obtained 2166 ± 1177 (SF) or 1640 ± 1064 (JLF) × 10primary cells and 18,673 ± 8500 (SF) or 16,870 ± 3348 (JLF) × 10passaged cells, surpassing the target number. Passaged cells were morphologically uniform, self-proliferating, CD29, CD44, CD90, and CD105-positive, and CD31-negative cells, with the ability to differentiate into osteoblasts, chondrocytes, and adipocytes. Healthy dogs (n = 3) then received a 1-mL allogenic MSC suspension (at 1×, 5×, and 10 × 10cells), harvested and prepared with the same method, by intraarticular injection (with contralateral knees as negative controls), and were evaluated for adverse clinical signs, hematologic and biochemical parameters periodically, and joint images and pathology at day 90. No abnormal findings were found in any dogs, confirming the safety of allogeneic MSC transplantation.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40974968/