IMMUNOLOGY2026™ Conference Recordings For Attendees-Strategy to activate ephrin-Eph signaling pathways and develop a novel therapeutic approach to regenerative wound repair in veterinary medicine

Strategy to activate ephrin-Eph signaling pathways and develop a novel therapeutic approach to regenerative wound repair in veterinary medicine

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Video Summary

The speaker described a translational “One Medicine” project linking veterinary and human wound-healing research. In horses, especially the distal limb, wounds heal slowly because contraction is limited and exuberant granulation tissue (“proud flesh”) blocks re-epithelialization. The lab discovered that ephrin A3/EPHA2 signaling plays an underappreciated role in cutaneous repair. They observed that progestin treatment reduced this pathway in mouse vaginal epithelium, then showed that recombinant ephrin A3 could restore tissue thickness. Building on that, they developed a new ephrin A3-mimetic peptide with much stronger EPHA2 binding than an older peptide. In mouse wound models, the peptide accelerated closure, and in horse wounds it improved epithelial thickness, reduced inflammation and hemorrhage, and promoted better tissue organization. The treatment also helped chronic client-owned horse wounds that had not healed for over a year. The speaker concluded the peptide may have broader applications in other mammals, including humans.

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Date April 17, 2026 5:30 PM - 5:45 PM

Room 104AB

Session Learning from Others - Immunity from the Jawless to Paws and Hooves

Speaker Thomas Cherpes

Track Veterinary and Comparative Immunology (VET)

Year 2026

Keywords

One Medicine

ephrin A3 EPHA2 signaling

equine wound healing

proud flesh

ephrin A3 mimetic peptide

April 17, 2026 5:30 PM - 5:45 PM

104AB

Learning from Others - Immunity from the Jawless to Paws and Hooves

Thomas Cherpes

Veterinary and Comparative Immunology (VET)

2026