Mammal skin has a crucial function in several life-preserving processes such as hydration, protection against chemicals and pathogens, initialization of vitamin D synthesis, excretion and heat regulation. Severe damage of the skin may therefore be life-threatening. Skin wound repair is a multiphased, yet well-orchestrated process including the interaction of various cell types, growth factors and cytokines aiming at closure of the skin and preferably resulting in tissue repair. Regardless various therapeutic modalities targeting at enhancing wound healing, the development of novel approaches for this pathology remains a clinical challenge. The time-consuming conservative wound management is mainly restricted to wound repair rather than restitution of the tissue integrity (the so-called “restitutio ad integrum”). Therefore, there is a continued search towards more efficacious wound therapies to reduce health care burden, provide patients with long-term relief and ultimately scarless wound healing. Recent in vivo and in vitro studies on the use of skin wound regenerative therapies provide encouraging results, but more protracted studies will have to determine whether the effect of observed effects are clinically significant and whether regeneration rather than repair can be achieved. For all the aforementioned reasons, this article reviews the emerging field of regenerative skin wound healing in mammals with particular emphasis on growth factor- and stem cell-based therapies.

Degenerative joint disease (DJD) is a major cause of reduced athletic function and retirement in equine performers. For this reason, regenerative therapies for DJD have gained increasing interest. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were isolated from a 6-year-old donor horse. MSCs were either used in their native state or after chondrogenic induction. In an initial study, 20 horses with naturally occurring DJD in the fetlock joint were divided in 4 groups and injected with the following: 1) PRP; 2) MSCs; 3) MSCs and PRP; or 4) chondrogenic induced MSCs and PRP. The horses were then evaluated by means of a clinical scoring system after 6 weeks (T1), 12 weeks (T2), 6 months (T3) and 12 months (T4) post injection. In a second study, 30 horses with the same medical background were randomly assigned to one of the two combination therapies and evaluated at T1. The protein expression profile of native MSCs was found to be negative for major histocompatibility (MHC) II and p63, low in MHC I and positive for Ki67, collagen type II (Col II) and Vimentin. Chondrogenic induction resulted in increased mRNA expression of aggrecan, Col II and cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP) as well as in increased protein expression of p63 and glycosaminoglycan, but in decreased protein expression of Ki67. The combined use of PRP and MSCs significantly improved the functionality and sustainability of damaged joints from 6 weeks until 12 months after treatment, compared to PRP treatment alone. The highest short-term clinical evolution scores were obtained with chondrogenic induced MSCs and PRP. This study reports successful in vitro chondrogenic induction of equine MSCs. In vivo application of (induced) MSCs together with PRP in horses suffering from DJD in the fetlock joint resulted in a significant clinical improvement until 12 months after treatment.

Degenerative joint disease is one of the main causes of equine early retirement from pleasure riding or a performance career. The disease is initially triggered by an abnormal loading of normal cartilage or a normal loading of abnormal cartilage. This primary insult is accompanied with joint inflammation, which leads to further progressive degeneration of the articular cartilage and changes in the surrounding tissues. Therefore, in search for an effective treatment, 75 adult horses with early signs of degenerative fetlock joint disease were enrolled in a randomized, multicenter, double-blinded, and placebo-controlled study. Fifty animals were injected intra-articularly with the investigational veterinary product (IVP) consisting of allogeneic chondrogenic induced mesenchymal stem cells (ciMSCs) with equine allogeneic plasma, and 25 horses were injected with 0.9% NaCl (saline) control product. From week 3 to 18 after treatment, lameness scores ( P < 0.001), flexion test responses ( P < 0.034), and joint effusion scores ( P < 0.001) were remarkably superior in IVP-treated horses. Besides nasal discharge in both treatment groups, no adverse events were observed during the entire study period. On long-term follow-up (1 year), significantly more investigational product-treated horses were working at training level or were returned to their previous level of work ( P < 0.001).

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Conventional treatments of osteoarthritis (OA) reduce pain and the inflammatory response but do not repair the damaged cartilage. Xenogeneic peripheral blood-derived equine chondrogenically induced mesenchymal stem cells (ciMSC) could thus provide an interesting alternative. Six client-owned dogs with confirmed elbow OA were subjected to a baseline orthopedic examination, pressure plate analysis, general clinical examination, hematological analysis, synovial fluid sampling, and radiographic examination, and their owners completed two surveys. After all examinations, a 0.9% saline solution (placebo control product=CP) was administered intra-articularly. After 6 weeks, all examinations were repeated, owners again completed two surveys, and equine ciMSCs were administered in the same joint. After another 6 weeks, dogs were returned for a final follow-up. No serious adverse events or suspected adverse drug reactions were present during this study. No significant differences in blood analysis were noted between the CP and ciMSC treatment. Two adverse events were observed, both in the same dog, one after CP treatment and one after ciMSC treatment. The owner surveys revealed significantly less pain and lameness after ciMSC treatment compared to after CP treatment. There was no significant difference in the orthopedic examination parameters, the radiographic examination, synovial fluid sampling, and pressure plate analysis between CP treatment and ciMSC treatment. A single intra-articular administration of equine ciMSCs proved to be a well-tolerated treatment, which reduced lameness and pain according to the owner’s evaluations compared to a placebo treatment.