PMID:15563600

Citation	Colnot, S, Decaens, T, Niwa-Kawakita, M, Godard, C, Hamard, G, Kahn, A, Giovannini, M and Perret, C (2004) Liver-targeted disruption of Apc in mice activates beta-catenin signaling and leads to hepatocellular carcinomas. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 101:17216-21
Abstract	Although inappropriate activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway has been implicated in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the role of this signaling in liver carcinogenesis remains unclear. To investigate this issue, we constructed a mutant mouse strain, Apc(lox/lox), in which exon 14 of the tumor-suppressor gene adenomatous polyposis coli (Apc) is flanked by loxP sequences. i.v. injection of adenovirus encoding Cre recombinase (AdCre) at high multiplicity [10(9) plaque-forming units (pfu) per mouse] inactivated the Apc gene in the liver and resulted in marked hepatomegaly, hepatocyte hyperplasia, and rapid mortality. beta-Catenin signaling activation was demonstrated by nuclear and cytoplasmic accumulation of beta-catenin in the hepatocytes and by the induction of beta-catenin target genes (glutamine synthetase, glutamate transporter 1, ornithine aminotransferase, and leukocyte cell-derived chemotaxin 2) in the liver. To test a long-term oncogenic effect, we inoculated mice with lower doses of AdCre (0.5 x 10(9) pfu per mouse), compatible with both survival and persistence of beta-catenin-activated cells. In these conditions, 67% of mice developed HCC. beta-Catenin signaling was strongly activated in these Apc-inactivated HCCs. The HCCs were well, moderately, or poorly differentiated. Indeed, their histological and molecular features mimicked human HCC. Thus, deletion of Apc in the liver provides a valuable model of human HCC, and, in this model, activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway by invalidation of Apc is required for liver tumorigenesis.
Links	PubMed PMC535370 Online version:10.1073/pnas.0404761101
Keywords	Animals; Cytoskeletal Proteins/physiology; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Gene Silencing; Genes, APC; Genetic Vectors/administration & dosage; Immunohistochemistry; Liver/metabolism; Liver Neoplasms, Experimental/etiology; Liver Neoplasms, Experimental/genetics; Liver Neoplasms, Experimental/pathology; Mice; Mice, Mutant Strains; Phenotype; Signal Transduction; Survival Rate; Trans-Activators/physiology; Transcription, Genetic; beta Catenin
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