Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 13, 2026

A "Patient-Like" Orthotopic Syngeneic Mouse Model of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Metastasis
Published on: October 24, 2015
[Establishment and biological characteristics of mouse models mimicking postoperative human carcinoma metastasis]
Bing Xu1, Ming Yao, Weiwang Gu
1Department of Laboratory Animal Science, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
Objective:
To establish mouse models that mimic the postoperative carcinoma metastasis in human, and observe the difference in the biological characteristics between the models for different human carcinomas.
Methods:
GBC, HCT-116, NCI-H460 and SMMC-7721 cells were inoculated subcutaneously in nude mice, respectively, and when the diameter of the resulting tumors reached 1.5 cm, tumor-reductive surgery (TRS) was performed, and the survival and tumor metastasis in the mice were observed.
Results:
Tumor metastasis in the lungs occurred in 6 nude mice (75%) in GBC group at 10 weeks postoperatively, while no tumor metastasis was found in the control group at 8 weeks, and the survival time of post-TRS mice was 2 weeks longer than that in mice without TRS. In HCT-116 group, the number of nude mice with metastasis in the lungs, spleen, and lymph nodes was 15 (100%), 5 (33.3%), and 15 (100%) 17 weeks after TRS, respectively, while only 3 (23.1%) mice in the control group developed lung metastasis at 9 weeks, and the survival time of the mice showed a 8-week prolongation after TRS. In NCI-H460 group, lung metastasis occurred in 5 nude mice (100%) 14 weeks after TRS, while no metastasis was found in the control group at 10 weeks, and TRS resulted in a 4-week prolongation of the survival time of the mice. In SMMC-7721 group, no metastasis occurred in IRS or control group in spite of the presence of organ failure, and the survival time of the mice was prolonged by 6 weeks after TRS.
Conclusions:
Resection of subcutaneously implanted tumor allows greater chances for postoperative metastasis but prolongs the survival of the tumor-bearing nude mice. The likeliness of postoperative metastasis is related to the biological characteristics of the original tumor implanted.
Related Concept Videos
Mouse Models of Cancer Study
The development of transgenic, knockout, and knock-in mice has led to an exponential increase in their use as model organisms in research,...
Mouse Models of Cancer Study
The development of transgenic, knockout, and knock-in mice has led to an exponential increase in their use as model organisms in research,...

