Stem Cells and Their Use in Veterinary Medicine

Stem cell therapy is an issue, which has recently gained importance in veterinary and human medicine. Three types of stem cells are presented as totipotent, pluripotent and multipotent. These cells are divided into two groups as embryonic and non-embryonic or adult type stem cells. While embryonic stem cells are obtained from the inner cell mass of blastocysts, adult type stem cells are derived from various tissues and organs such as bone marrow, peripheral blood, adipose tissue, skin, cardiac muscle, neurons, amniotic fluid, umbilical cord, and uterus. The stem cells can be transferred to the target tissues as allogeneic, autologous, syngeneic, and umbilical cord blood methods. In the present review, general information about the source, isolation and transfer methods of stem cells and their use in veterinary medicine are given.