Research is underway at the University of Guelph to investigate whether stem cells can be used to promote healing of injured joints in horses. Professor Dean Betts and graduate student Thomas Koch are using blood collected from the umbilical cords of foals as their source of stem cells. This source of stem cells can be obtained painlessly and non-invasively at the time of birth. Evidence suggests that the stem cells from the umbilical cord are capable of differentiating into several different tissue types, and may be less prone to rejection than stem cells obtained from bone marrow.
So far the researchers have been successful at culturing stem cells from umbilical cords and differentiating them into 3 different cell types, including cartilage-forming cells (chondrocytes).
Joint injuries that involve cartilage damage are traditionally very slow to heal, and often the damage is irreversible. Potentially, the rate of healing could be accelerated and/or the damage could be reversed if cultured cartilage tissues could be successfully implanted into the injured joint.
If successful, equine athletes stand to benefit greatly from this research.
