PUBLICATION

Rapid and cost-effective xenograft hepatocellular carcinoma model in Zebrafish for drug testing

Authors
Tonon, F., Zennaro, C., Dapas, B., Carraro, M., Mariotti, M., Grassi, G.
ID
ZDB-PUB-161220-6
Date
2016
Source
International journal of pharmaceutics   515(1-2): 583-591 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Keywords
Bortezomib, Hepatocellular carcinoma, JHH6 cell line, Neo-angiogenesis, Zebrafish larvae xenograft
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents/pharmacology*
  • Bortezomib/pharmacology
  • Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/drug therapy*
  • Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/pathology*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Humans
  • Larva
  • Liver Neoplasms/drug therapy*
  • Liver Neoplasms/pathology*
  • Microinjections/methods
  • Neoplasm Transplantation/methods
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays/methods*
  • Zebrafish
PubMed
27989824 Full text @ Int J Pharm
Abstract
We developed a novel, rapid and cost-effective Zebrafish xenograft model of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) for drug screening in the disease. Following injection into the yolk sack of Zebrafish larvae of the human HCC cell line JHH6 stained by a vital dye, tumor mass growth was followed by fluorescence microscopy and by human Ki67 quantification. Tumor induced neo-angiogenesis was evaluated by alkaline phosphatase staining of the vessels, by using the Tg(fli1:EGFP)y1 strain of Zebrafish and by the quantification of the zebrafish vascular endothelial growth factor and of its receptor. We show that it is feasible to micro-inject JHH6 in Zebrafish larvae, that injected cells can grow for different days and that this induces a marked neo-angiogenesis. Finally, we show that our model allows testing the effects of anti-HCC drugs such as Bortezomib. Compared to more complex HCC mouse models, our model is far less expensive, faster to set up and does not need immunosuppressant treatment. Finally, the model makes use of JHH6, an aggressive form of HCC cell line never tested before in Zebrafish. In conclusion, the possibility to test anti HCC/neo-angiogenesis drugs makes our JHH6 model useful to select therapeutic molecules for a highly vascularized tumor such as HCC.
Genes / Markers
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Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping