An overview of mouse models of hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has become a severe burden on global health due to its high morbidity and mortality rates. However, effective treatments for HCC are limited. The lack of suitable preclinical models may contribute to a major failure of drug development for HCC. Here, we overview several well-established mouse models of HCC, including genetically engineered mice, chemically-induced models, implantation models, and humanized mice. Immunotherapy studies of HCC have been a hot topic. Therefore, we will introduce the application of mouse models of HCC in immunotherapy. This is followed by a discussion of some other models of HCC-related liver diseases, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), hepatitis B and C virus infection, and liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. Together these provide researchers with a current overview of the mouse models of HCC and assist in the application of appropriate models for their research.

Keywords: Animal model; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Immunotherapy.

Fig. 1

Commonly used techniques to establish GEMMs including Cre-Loxp recombination, CRISPR-Cas9, and Sleeping Beauty transposase system

Fig. 2

Three widely used HIS mice including Hu-PBL mice, Hu-HSC mice (or Hu-SRC, Hu-CD34 + Model), and BLT mice