Osteoarthritis (OA) is currently an incurable and progressive condition in dogs causing chronic joint pain and possibly increasing disability. Due to the poor healing capacity of cartilage lesions that occur with OA, development of effective therapeutics is difficult. For this reason, current OA therapy is mostly limited to the management of pain and inflammation, but not directed ad disease modification. In the search for a safe and effective OA treatment, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been of great interest since these cells might be able to restore cartilage defects. The designs of OA studies on MSC usage, however, are not always consistent and complete, which limits a clear evaluation of MSC efficacy. The general study results show a tendency to improve lameness, joint pain and range of motion in dogs suffering from naturally-occurring OA. Assessment of the cartilage surface demonstrated the ability of MSCs to promote cartilage-like tissue formation in artificially created cartilage defects. Immunomodulatory capacities of MSCs also seem to play an important role in reducing pain and inflammation in dogs. It should be mentioned, however, that in the current studies in literature there are specific design limitations and further research is warranted to confirm these findings.

Background Mesenchymal stem cell treatments in dogs have been investigated as a potential innovative alternative to current conventional therapies for a variety of conditions. So far, the precise mode of action of the MSCs has yet to be determined. The aim of this study was to gain more insights into the pharmacokinetics of MSCs by evaluating their biodistribution in healthy dogs after different injection routes. Methods Three different studies were performed in healthy dogs to evaluate the biodistribution pattern of radiolabelled equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells following intravenous, intramuscular and subcutaneous administration in comparison with free 99mTechnetium. The labelling of the equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells was performed using stannous chloride as a reducing agent. Whole-body scans were obtained using a gamma camera during a 24-h follow-up. Results The labelling efficiency ranged between 59.58 and 83.82%. Free 99mTechnetium accumulation was predominantly observed in the stomach, thyroid, bladder and salivary glands, while following intravenous injection, the 99mTechnetium-labelled equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells majorly accumulated in the liver throughout the follow-up period. After intramuscular and subcutaneous injection, the injected dose percentage remained very high at the injection site. Conclusions A distinct difference was noted in the biodistribution pattern of the radiolabelled equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells compared to free 99mTechnetium indicating equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells have a specific pharmacokinetic pattern after systemic administration in healthy dogs. Furthermore, the biodistribution pattern of the used xenogeneic equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells appeared to be different from previously reported experiments using different sources of mesenchymal stem cells.

Background: Mesenchymal stem cell treatments in dogs have been investigated as a potential innovative alternative to current conventional therapies for a variety of conditions. So far, the precise mode of action of the MSCs has yet to be determined. The aim of this study was to gain more insights in the pharmacokinetics of MSCs by evaluating their biodistribution in healthy dogs after different injection routes.Methods: Three different studies were performed in healthy dogs to evaluate the biodistribution of radiolabelled equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells following intravenous, intramuscular and subcutaneous administration in comparison with free 99mTechnetium. The labelling of the equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells was performed using stannous chloride as reducing agent. Whole body scans were obtained using a gamma camera during a 24h follow-up.Results: The labelling efficiency ranged between 59.58 and 83.82%. Free 99mTechnetium accumulation was predominantly observed in stomach, thyroid, bladder and salivary glands while, following intravenous injection, the 99mTechnetium labelled equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells majorly accumulated in the liver throughout the follow-up period. After intramuscular and subcutaneous injection, the injected dose percentage remained very high at the injection site.Conclusions: A distinct difference was noted in biodistribution of the radiolabelled equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells compared to free 99mTechnetium indicating equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells have a specific pharmacokinetic pattern after systemic administration in healthy dogs. Furthermore, the natural biodistribution pattern of the used equine peripheral blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells appeared to be different to previously reported experiments using different sources of mesenchymal stem cells.

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Een ruptuur van de craniale kruisband en heupdysplasie (HD) zijn de meest voorkomende aandoeningen van de achterhand bij de hond en toch is er in de literatuur weinig te vinden over het gecombineerde optreden van beide aandoeningen. Het doel van deze studie was om meer informatie te verkrijgen over de invloed van HD op het al dan niet ontwikkelen van een ruptuur van de craniale kruisband. Tussen 2016 en 2020 werden op de dienst Orthopedie van de Faculteit Diergeneeskunde (UGent) te Merelbeke 465 honden aangeboden met een ruptuur van de craniale kruisband (12,36%). Hiervan vertoonde 17% concomitante HD. Bij de honden met HD trad de ruptuur van de craniale kruisband in de eerste knie gemiddeld op jongere leeftijd op dan bij honden met gezonde heupen. Daarnaast ontwikkelde zich vaker een bilaterale ruptuur van de craniale kruisband bij de honden met HD en liepen ze bij unilaterale heupklachten een groter risico op de ontwikkeling van een ruptuur aan de contralaterale knie. De resultaten benadrukken het belang om honden met HD mankvrij te houden, om zo een overbelasting van de knieën te voorkomen.