Equine Innovators Archives – The Horse

Equine Innovators: Improving Joint Health in Horses With Orthobiologics

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Wed, 16 Apr 2025 17:00:00 +0000

Dr. Kara Brown conducts a lameness exam. Photo: John Donges/Penn Vet

In this episode of TheHorse.com’s Equine Innovators, Kara Brown, VMD, Dipl. ACVSMR, assistant professor of equine sports medicine and rehabilitation at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center, in Kennett Square, describes innovative approaches to diagnosing and managing osteoarthritis (OA) in horses. She explains how joint degeneration impacts equine athletes and where traditional treatments such as NSAIDs and corticosteroids fall short—especially in horses with metabolic risk factors.

Brown explores the growing role of regenerative medicine, including orthobiologic therapies such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP), autologous protein solution (Pro-Stride APS), and stem cells. She highlights recent research into these therapies’ safety and efficacy, including findings that show common pain medications don’t compromise orthobiologic product quality when used appropriately.

Throughout the conversation Brown emphasizes the importance of early diagnosis, advanced imaging technologies (MRI, CT, PET), and personalized, rehabilitation-based care to extend joint health and performance in both young athletes and aging equine partners.

The Equine Innovators podcast series is brought to you by Zoetis. You can find the Equine Innovators podcast on TheHorse.com, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and many other podcast apps. Don’t miss a single episode! Sign up now to receive email reminders from The Horse.

Show Notes:

Research News Releases:

About the Researcher:

Kara A. Brown, VMD, Dipl. ACVSMR, is assistant professor in Equine Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine’s (Penn Vet) New Bolton Center, in Kennett Square. She is a graduate of Penn Vet. After graduation she completed an equine internship at Woodside Equine Clinic, in Ashland, Virginia, followed by a large animal internship, a clinical fellowship in large animal cardiology and ultrasound, and a residency training program in equine sports medicine and rehabilitation at New Bolton Center. She is a boarded diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation and has a strong clinical and research interest in poor performance in the equine athlete, axial skeletal pain, and regenerative medicine.

Equine Innovators: Pathology is More Than Just Necropsies

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Tue, 20 Dec 2022 20:00:40 +0000

Equine Innovators: What You Need to Know About EHV-1

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 20:00:31 +0000

Innovators: What’s a ‘Horse on a Chip,’ and How Will It Change Equine Research?

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Wed, 31 Aug 2022 18:18:18 +0000

As horse owners, we might not think about how research in humans can help horses, and vice versa. Carrie Shaffer, PhD of the University of Kentucky’s (UK) Department of Veterinary Sciences and the Gluck Equine Research Center is working at the interface of human and equine medicine, creating tiny models of horses’ body systems to better understand how we can prevent and fight equine disease and help body processes such as wound repair and tissue healing.

The “Equine Innovators” podcast series is brought to you by Zoetis. You can find the Equine Innovators podcast on TheHorse.com, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcast, and many other podcast apps. Don’t miss a single episode! Sign up now to receive email reminders from The Horse.

About the Expert:

Carrie L. Shaffer, PhD, is an assistant professor in the University of Kentucky’s (UK) Department of Veterinary Sciences and the Gluck Equine Research Center. She holds joint faculty appointments in the UK College of Medicine (Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics) and the UK College of Pharmacy (Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences). Shaffer is a graduate of the UK College of Agriculture (BSc) and Vanderbilt University (PhD), and she completed National-Institutes-of-Health-funded postdoctoral fellowships at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and the California Institute of Technology. An expert in host-pathogen interactions and microbial pathogenesis, her research interests include understanding mechanisms underlying equine infectious disease using novel in vitro biomimetic models. One major focus of the Shaffer Lab is developing an innovative “horse-on-a-chip” microfluidic platform and diverse equine organoid model systems to enable investigations that address fundamental questions in equine infectious disease, therapeutic and vaccine development, allergic and immune-modulated conditions, tissue remodeling in response to injury, developmental and reproductive biology, and the identification of genetic factors that determine disease outcome in the horse.

Equine Innovators: Does How You Manage Your Horse Farm Make Sense?

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Thu, 30 Jun 2022 17:34:26 +0000

Equine Innovators: Horse Transport and Stress

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Fri, 22 Apr 2022 18:00:21 +0000

Photo: Stephanie L. Church/The Horse

In this episode Dr. Amanda Adams and PhD student Erica Jacquay of the University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Center describe new research on how horses of all ages respond to transport‚ even just 1.5-hour trips across town. They also preview the results of a survey of U.S. horse owners and their trailering practices.

The Equine Innovators’ podcast series is brought to you by Zoetis. You can find the Equine Innovators podcast on TheHorse.com, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcast, and many other podcast apps. Don’t miss a single episode! Sign up now to receive email reminders from The Horse.

Show notes:

Article: Immunosenescence: What Owners of Old Horses Need to Know
Article: How Does Transport Impact Senior Horse Immune Function?
Article: Equine Immunity: From Birth to Old Age
Article: It’s All Connected: Bodywide Inflammation in Horses
Podcast: Equine Innovators: Dr. Amanda Adams Talks about Older Horses

About the Researchers:

Innovators: Equine Reproductive Health

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Fri, 18 Feb 2022 14:00:44 +0000

Equine Innovators: Rotavirus on the Move in Foals

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Thu, 16 Dec 2021 13:30:34 +0000

Equine Innovators: Exploring Demand for Wild Horses

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Thu, 28 Oct 2021 13:00:57 +0000

Jill Stowe, PhD, of the University of Kentucky, recently studied how many American horse owners are willing to adopt wild horses and what type they’d select.10/28/2021 13:00

Equine Innovators: The Horse Pathologist’s Perspective

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Tue, 31 Aug 2021 16:01:49 +0000

Learn from Dr. Jennifer Janes, part of the University of Kentucky’s CSI team for horse diseases, conditions, and poisonings.8/31/2021 16:01

Equine Innovators: Horse Breeds and Genetic Variation

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Tue, 29 Jun 2021 13:52:14 +0000

Equine Innovators: Drug Testing in Racing and Competition

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Thu, 13 May 2021 19:00:56 +0000

Equine Innovators: Optimizing Barn and Arena Ventilation

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Sun, 14 Feb 2021 15:00:53 +0000

Equine Innovators: Feeding Horses With Dr. Laurie Lawrence

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Mon, 21 Dec 2020 16:30:32 +0000

Equine Innovators: Dr. Amanda Adams Talks About Older Horses

Michelle Anderson — Mon, 26 Oct 2020 18:20:03 +0000

Equine Innovators: Racetrack Surfaces With Dr. Mick Peterson

Michelle Anderson — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 18:33:33 +0000

Equine Innovators: African Horse Sickness With Dr. Peter Timoney

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 14:00:46 +0000

Equine Innovators: COVID-19 and the Equine Economy With Dr. Jill Stowe

Michelle Anderson — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 19:33:14 +0000

Equine Innovators: A Discussion With the University of Kentucky’s Dr. Martin Nielsen

Michelle Anderson — Mon, 24 Feb 2020 14:04:43 +0000

Introducing The Horse’s New ‘Equine Innovators’ Podcast

Michelle Anderson — Thu, 20 Feb 2020 16:35:02 +0000

Join us as we interview leading equine researchers in this new podcast series. Brought to you by Zoetis.