Abstract

Orthopedic dysfunction is a common cause of lameness in giraffes in managed care and is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality.^1-3 Multiple etiologies have been proposed to account for this pathologic process, but a definitive cause has not been identified.^2,3 This process can be incredibly difficult to manage and involves intricate and risky anesthetic events.³ While prevention would be preferable to treatment, the multifactorial etiology is still incompletely understood and may not be able to be corrected in a managed care setting. Safe and effective treatments are urgently needed that will provide both symptomatic relief and ideally assist in resolution of the pathologic process. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are a recent novel therapeutic in the field of regenerative medicine that possess the unique qualities of providing symptomatic relief through the downregulation of inflammation, but in addition provide regeneration of the damaged joint through provision of growth factors and stimulation of endogenous stem cell populations.⁴ MSC can be derived from a variety of tissues—most commonly adipose, bone marrow, or placenta. This report describes the generation of mesenchymal stem cells from multiple tissue sources in the giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata) and subsequent characterization and administration to multiple giraffes with severe orthopedic dysfunction. All giraffes treated were reported to have increased comfort and function as assessed by evaluation of subjective and objective measures. This therapy is a promising new technology that has great potential in the treatment of a challenging and common disorder in this species.

Acknowledgments

The author acknowledges funding through Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Crowdfunding Grant (VJ, LD) and private donations to Colorado State University (VJ).

Literature Cited

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