Adipose tissue derived mesenchymal stem cells for musculoskeletal repair in veterinary medicine

Adipose tissue derived stem cells (ASCs) are mesenchymal stem cells which can be obtained from different adipose tissue sources within the body. It is an abundant cell pool, which is easy accessible and the cells can be obtained in large numbers, cultivated and expanded in vitro and prepared for tissue engineering approaches, especially for skeletal tissue repair. In the recent years this cell population has attracted a great amount of attention among researchers in human as well as in veterinary medicine. In the meantime ASCs have been well characterized and their use in regenerative medicine is very well established. This review focuses on the characterization of ASCs for their use for tissue engineering approaches especially in veterinary medicine and also highlights a selection of clinical trials on the basis of ASCs as the relevant cell source.