This week on Sit. Stay. Learn., I reviewed a 2022 study by He et al. in Frontiers in Veterinary Science that tested whether umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) could improve recovery after trochlear groove reconstruction (TGR) in dogs. Ten healthy poodles were divided into treatment and control groups, with UC-MSCs injected intra-articularly on days 0, 7, and 14. The treated dogs showed significantly lower white blood cell and neutrophil counts on days 7 and 21, indicating less inflammation, and recovered mobility about four days faster than controls. CT and histology revealed early cartilage regeneration and restored bone contour in the UC-MSC group, while controls still had cartilage gaps. Overall, UC-MSCs appeared to reduce inflammation, speed healing, and improve joint repair without adverse effects. Since these were donor (allogeneic) cells, I’d like to see future work confirm long-term safety—one reason I often favor autologous options like Ardent’s SVF therapy. If you’ve used PRP or cell therapy in a TGR case, I’d love to hear your results at adrienne@ardentanimalhealth.com or www.ardentanimalhealth.com.

Today’s Paper: Adipose-Derived MSCs for Chronic Kidney Disease

This week, I’m switching gears. Most of the studies I cover are animal-focused, but this time we’re looking at a human pilot study that gives us insights we can bring right back into veterinary medicine.

Paper: “Adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells for treating chronic kidney disease: A pilot study assessing safety and clinical feasibility.”

Authors: Villanueva, González, Lorca, Tapia, López G, Strodthoff, Fajre, Carreño, Valjalo, Vergara, Lecanda, Bartolucci, Figueroa, Khoury. Journal/Year: Kidney Research and Clinical Practice, 2019.

Why This Matters

CKD is progressive, permanent, and expensive—on both the human and veterinary sides. Prevalence snapshots: ~1% of dogs overall (≈10% in seniors); ~3% of cats overall (up to 50% after age 15). Breeds differ, and dogs often fare worse. Standard care slows decline but doesn’t stop it. MSCs are attractive for their anti-inflammatory, trophic, and immune-modulating effects.

At Ardent, we’ve seen more than a decade of cat cases where MSCs improve appetite, weight stability, and energy—even when bloodwork isn’t a fireworks show.

Study Design

• Participants: 7 enrolled; 1 excluded for poor cell expansion → 6 treated (3 men, 3 women; mean age 42). Four had hypertension. Mean serum creatinine 2.22 mg/dL.
• Intervention: Single IV infusion of autologous adipose-derived MSCs at 1M cells/kg, in 120 mL LRS over 30–40 min. One patient received ~59% of target dose.
• Control approach: Each patient served as their own control (12 months pre-treatment vs. 12 months post-treatment). Standard meds, BP control, and protein restriction continued.

Results

• Safety: No treatment-related adverse events. Coagulation, liver, and metabolic labs stayed stable.
• Proteinuria: Worsened during the control period; decreased in nearly all patients after MSC therapy. Even the renal-dysplasia case slowed its decline compared with pre-treatment.
• Renal function: eGFR decline overall wasn’t statistically significant, but 5/6 patients had plasma creatinine reductions (7.5%–49%). Lower-inflammation phenotypes seemed to stabilize better—hinting MSC benefits aren’t just anti-inflammatory window dressing.

Why It’s Exciting (and useful for vets)

• Feasibility: One IV dose, well tolerated. No drama.
• Meaningful signal: Broad proteinuria improvement, with several creatinine drops, mirrors what we see in cats—quality-of-life wins even when lab numbers are shy.
• Right cell source: Adipose-derived MSCs are less invasive to harvest and yield more cells than bone marrow—important since bone-marrow MSCs can be defective in some CKD patients. Practical for both human and veterinary settings.

A single IV infusion of autologous adipose-derived MSCs in CKD was safe, feasible, and showed encouraging proteinuria reductions with some creatinine improvements.

For veterinary medicine, it reinforces what many of us already see: stem cell therapy can provide meaningful improvements, especially in quality of life, even when blood values don’t tell the full story. What do you think—could MSCs reshape how we approach CKD in pets? You can read the full study and email me at adrienne@ardentanimalhealth.com

This week, I reviewed a case study sent to me by our own technical services veterinarian, Dr. Larry Snyder. If you’ve never had the chance to talk with Dr. Snyder, you should—he’s got over 20 years of regenerative medicine experience and a passion for helping vets think through tough cases.

The paper itself looked at platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for the treatment of prostatic cysts in dogs. It comes from researchers in Italy and was published in The Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research in 2018