Japan turns to stem cells as vets struggle with blood shortage for dogs

KYOTO – Veterinary hospitals in Japan are struggling to secure enough blood for life-saving transfusions for dogs, prompting researchers to explore whether stem cells could eventually provide an alternative to animal donors.Unlike human blood, canine blood has no nationwide supply system in Japan, leaving veterinary hospitals to secure their own stocks for dogs suffering severe blood loss in accidents or during surgery.Takashi Mori, director of Daktari Animal Hospital in Kyoto, said veterinarians once commonly kept dogs as blood donors, but animal welfare concerns have made the practice increasingly difficult.The hospital operates a blood bank, which regularly collects and stores blood and maintains a registry of donor dogs that can be brought in for emergency donations.But with only three dogs registered, supplies remain insufficient.“We just don’t have enough blood,” Mori said.The amount of blood collected from each dog is limited based on its weight, while sufficient time must pass between donations to protect the animal’s health.When supplies run low, hospital staff sometimes bring in their own dogs to donate blood.The shortage has also forced veterinarians to make difficult decisions during surgery.When a tumour ruptures during an operation, blood released from it may be suctioned out and returned to the dog’s body.The procedure carries a risk of spreading cancer cells if the tumour is malignant, but Mori said the alternative could be worse.“It’s better than having a dog die during surgery because it didn’t receive enough blood,” he said.For dogs with conditions requiring regular blood transfusions, veterinarians sometimes have to tell owners that keeping their pets alive will be difficult.Efforts to establish a wider blood supply network face significant obstacles.Under Japan’s pharmaceutical regulations, canine blood is classified as a veterinary drug, with restrictions on its transfer and sale making it difficult for neighbouring hospitals to share supplies.But Mori believes relaxing those regulations alone would not solve the underlying shortage.Even when hospitals appeal for donations, few owners are willing to allow their dogs to be sedated and have blood drawn.Animal welfare concerns make keeping dogs solely as blood donors impractical, while limited supplies leave little prospect of a commercially viable large-scale blood bank.A research team led by Osaka Metropolitan University professor Shingo Hatoya is exploring whether induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, could help address the chronic shortage of blood for transfusions.The team is working to produce canine red blood cells from iPS cells, which can develop into various types of cells in the body.In research announced in July, the team added several proteins to canine iPS cells and cultured them for nearly a month.The process produced cells resembling red blood cells that contained hemoglobin, an essential component of blood.However, only about 3% of the original iPS cells developed into red blood cell-like cells, meaning the technology is not yet ready for use in transfusions.Hatoya hopes the research will eventually make it possible for dogs to receive transfusions without depending on blood donations.“I want to create a system in which dogs can receive blood transfusions without relying on donors, improving the lives of both dogs and their owners,” he said. KYODO NEWS