A Comprehensive Exploration of Therapeutic Strategies in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases: Insights from Human and Animal Studies

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a collective term for a group of chronic inflammatory enteropathies which are characterized by intestinal inflammation and persistent or frequent gastrointestinal signs. This disease affects more than 3.5 million humans worldwide and presents some similarities between animal species, in particular, dogs and cats. Although the underlying mechanism that triggers the disease is not yet well understood, the evidence suggests a multifactorial etiology implicating genetic causes, environmental factors, microbiota imbalance, and mucosa immune defects, both in humans and in dogs and cats. Conventional immunomodulatory drug therapies, such as glucocorticoids or immunosuppressants, are related with numerous adverse effects that limit its long-term use, creating the need to develop new therapeutic strategies. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) emerge as a promising alternative that attenuates intestinal inflammation by modulating inflammatory cytokines in inflamed tissues, and also due to their pro-angiogenic, anti-apoptotic, anti-fibrotic, regenerative, anti-tumor, and anti-microbial potential. However, this therapeutic approach may have important limitations regarding the lack of studies, namely in veterinary medicine, lack of standardized protocols, and high economic cost. This review summarizes the main differences and similarities between human, canine, and feline IBD, as well as the potential treatment and future prospects of MSCs.

Keywords: cat; dog; human; inflammatory bowel disease; mesenchymal stromal cells; stem cells.

Figure 1

Chronic inflammatory enteropathy classification in dogs and cats according to treatment response.

Figure 2

Flowchart of study selection. A total of 488 studies were analyzed. There were 18 studies that met the following criteria: clinical trials in humans, dogs, and cats with IBD treated with IV infusion of MSCs (Original figure created with BioRender.com).

Figure 3

Differences in IBD causes, risk factors, injury sites and clinical signs between human and companion animals (dogs and cats). ++—with special incidence. (Original figure created with BioRender.com).

Figure 4

Immune response mechanisms in the pathogenesis of IBD (Original figure created with BioRender.com).