Medium-term storage of platelet-derived orthobiologics: a feasible alternative for equine practice.
Authors: Seidel Sarah Raphaela Torquato, Fülber Joice, Barbosa Ângela Perrone, Penatti Natalia Mori Avellaneda, Demasi Marilene, Baccarin Raquel Yvonne Arantes
Journal: Frontiers in veterinary science
Summary
# Editorial Summary Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) offers equine practitioners an accessible regenerative medicine tool, yet its clinical utility is constrained by the requirement for fresh preparation immediately before use and the time-intensive protocols involved in its manufacture. Researchers at the University of São Paulo developed and characterised PRP-derived products designed for medium-term storage whilst preserving therapeutic growth factor concentrations, evaluating their biochemical stability over extended periods compared with freshly prepared PRP. Storage-stabilised formulations maintained comparable levels of key growth factors—including PDGF, TGF-β, and VEGF—to freshly made products, establishing that medium-term storage is biochemically feasible without significant degradation of bioactive components. This approach addresses two persistent clinical bottlenecks: it eliminates the necessity to prepare PRP immediately before treatment and reduces operational complexity for busy equine practices, potentially enabling more flexible scheduling of regenerative therapies and batch production efficiency. For farriers and veterinarians employing PRP for soft-tissue and articular injuries, these findings suggest that pre-prepared, stored orthobiologic products may deliver equivalent therapeutic value to fresh preparations, streamlining clinical workflows without compromising efficacy.
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Practical Takeaways
- •PRP can now be prepared in advance and stored for extended periods, eliminating the need to generate fresh product on the day of treatment and increasing clinic efficiency
- •Stored PRP maintains growth factor content equivalent to fresh preparations, so efficacy should not be compromised by storage
- •This development makes PRP-based treatments more practical and economical for field and clinic-based equine practitioners by reducing preparation time and allowing batch processing
Key Findings
- •Medium-term storage of PRP-derived orthobiologics is feasible while maintaining growth factor concentrations similar to fresh products
- •Stored platelet-derived products retain therapeutic potential comparable to fresh PRP preparations
- •Storage capability addresses the practical limitation of requiring fresh product preparation at time of use