Transgenic mouse models generated by hydrodynamic transfection for genetic studies of liver cancer and preclinical testing of anti-cancer therapy.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most lethal cancers worldwide; however, the genetic mechanisms underlying its pathogenesis are incompletely understood. Genetically engineered mouse (GEM) models of HCC have been developed to elucidate the role of individual cancer-related genes in hepatocarcinogenesis. However, the expensive and time-consuming processes related to generating a GEM model discourage the development of diverse genotype models. Recently, a simple and inexpensive liver-specific transgenic approach was developed, in which a hydrodynamics-based transfection (HT) method was coupled with the Sleeping Beauty transposase system. Various HT models in which different oncogenic pathways are activated and/or tumor-suppressing pathways inactivated have been developed in recent years. The applicability of HT models in liver cancer research is expected to broaden and ultimately elucidate the cooperation between oncogenic signaling pathways and aid in designing molecular therapy to target altered pathways.