How off-the-shelf stem cells are aiming to treat systemic inflammation quickly

In this dvm360 interview, Rebecca Windsor, DVM, DACVIM (Neurology), outlines Gallant’s approach to building regulated, ready-to-use stem cell products for veterinary practice. She walks through how mesenchymal stromal cells work systemically to reduce immune-driven inflammation, addresses common safety myths, contrasts donor-sourced therapies with patient-sourced and unregulated products, and previews upcoming targets such as feline chronic gingivostomatitis (FCGS) and osteoarthritis.

Editor’s note: This Q&A was drafted from an audio interview. The responses from Windsor have been lightly edited for clarity and flow in a written format.

dvm360: Can you outline Gallant's approach to stem cell therapy and the problem it aims to solve for clinicians and patients?

Windsor: "The main difference is we are developing FDA-regulated, off-the-shelf stem cell therapy so they are available on demand, as needed. We're sourcing our cells from mesenchymal stromal cells from uterine tissue, which is really unique from healthy animals that would get spayed anyway. [They are] screened donors using dog-to-dog and cat-to-cat donors to allow stem cell therapies to be available to any pet that would need it, instead of having it be more of a boutique type of therapy targeting the root cause of disease."

dvm360: How do these mesenchymal stromal cells actually work to reduce inflammation and promote healing?

Windsor: "The majority of inflammatory and many degenerative diseases are rooted in immune dysregulation. Stem cells are predominantly immunomodulatory. We give them IV, and they start working immediately systemically to reduce that systemic inflammation. Then they follow chemotactic signals from the diseased tissue. Once they're there, they release cytokines, growth factors, exosomes—all things that can help rebalance the immune system to make it less inflammatory. They also can work with the cells that are there to make them be more anti-inflammatory and promote tissue repair."

dvm360: What are the most common myths you encounter about stem cell therapy, particularly regarding safety?

Windsor: "The number one is whether or not it's going to cause an immune reaction. [Mesenchymal stromal cells] contain a low number of MHC class receptors, so the body's immune system doesn't recognize it as foreign. The other common one is whether or not they're going to cause tumors. Mesenchymal stromal cells really stick inside their lane—they're not going to go form a bunch of other cells—and we've got good long-term data that show that they don't form tumors."

dvm360: How does this differ from other regenerative therapies a practitioner might encounter?

Windsor: "The majority of therapies are going to either be sourced from the patient, [which requires] putting the patient through a lot, [and] stem cells that are coming from patients that are sick or older.... The other thing is, people are getting products that are not the same as a pure stem cell therapy [and] are not going through FDA regulations, so you're not quite sure exactly what you're getting."

dvm360: Looking ahead, what does the pipeline look like for future conditions beyond FCGS?

Windsor: "We're really excited. Our next biggest target will probably be feline osteoarthritis. Again, we want cats to go first. Hopefully [we will have] 2 feline stem cell therapies before [one for] dogs comes out, with canine osteoarthritis closely behind. [Other conditions include] atopic dermatitis [and] inflammatory bowel disease—another one that's a really big interest to us as well."