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A reliable scoring system after major liver resection in mice
Yinzhe Xu1, Nalu Navarro-Alvarez2, Chao Yang2
1Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China; Division of Transplantation, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
The Journal of Surgical Research
|July 26, 2016
Summary
A new scoring system predicts death after liver surgery in mice within 24 hours. This non-invasive method assesses activity, posture, fur, breathing, and eyes to monitor liver regeneration and inflammation.
Area of Science:
- Hepatobiliary Surgery
- Regenerative Medicine
- Animal Models
Background:
- Posthepatectomy liver failure and small-for-size syndrome are critical challenges in liver surgery and transplantation.
- Current mouse models for studying liver regeneration often require invasive procedures, impacting study outcomes.
- There is a need for non-invasive methods to predict outcomes after partial hepatectomy in preclinical studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a quantitative observational scoring system to predict mortality following partial hepatectomy in mice within the first 24 postoperative hours.
- To correlate the scoring system with biochemical markers of liver injury and histological indicators of regeneration and inflammation.
- To provide a tool for evaluating interventions aimed at improving survival and liver regeneration posthepatectomy.
Main Methods:
- A total of 100 C57BL/6 mice underwent two-thirds hepatectomy and were monitored for up to 7 days.
- A five-category scoring system (activity, posture, fur, respiration, eyes) was used, with scores recorded at multiple time points post-surgery.
- A subset of mice underwent blood and liver tissue sampling for biochemical and histological analysis.
Main Results:
- A body condition score of ≤5 on two consecutive occasions within 24 hours post-surgery accurately predicted subsequent mortality.
- Mice with low scores exhibited significantly elevated liver enzymes (ALT, bilirubin), inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-α), increased hepatocyte necrosis, and reduced proliferation (Ki-67).
- The scoring system demonstrated a strong correlation with indicators of liver damage, regeneration, and systemic inflammation.
Conclusions:
- The developed scoring system reliably predicts survival, hepatocyte damage, liver regeneration, and systemic inflammation in a mouse model of hepatectomy within 24 hours.
- This non-invasive observational tool can aid in the assessment of therapeutic strategies targeting posthepatectomy complications.
- The system offers a valuable method for real-time monitoring and outcome prediction in preclinical liver surgery research.
