The choline-deficient, ethionine-supplemented (CDE) dietary model induces chronic liver damage, and stimulates liver progenitor cell (LPC)-mediated repair. Long-term CDE administration leads to hepatocellular carcinoma in rodents and lineage-tracing studies show that LPCs differentiate into functional hepatocytes in this model. The CDE diet was first modified for mice by our laboratory by separately administering choline-deficient chow and ethionine in the drinking water (CD+E diet). Although this CD+E diet is widely used, concerns with variability in weight loss, morbidity, mortality and LPC response have been raised by researchers who have adopted this model. We propose that these inconsistencies are due to differential consumption of chow and ethionine in the drinking water, and that incorporating ethionine in the choline-deficient chow, and altering the strength, will achieve better outcomes. Therefore, C57Bl/6 mice, 5 and 6 weeks of age, were fed an all-inclusive CDE diet of various strengths (67% to 100%) for 3 weeks. The LPC response was quantitated and cell lines were derived. We found that animal survival, LPC response and liver damage are correlated with CDE diet strength. The 67% and 75% CDE diet administered to mice older than 5 weeks and greater than 18 g provides a consistent and acceptable level of animal welfare and induces a substantial LPC response, permitting their isolation and establishment of cell lines. This study shows that an all-inclusive CDE diet for mice reproducibly induces an LPC response conducive to in vivo studies and isolation, whilst minimizing morbidity and mortality.

Glycosylation of cell surface proteins regulate critical cellular functions including migration, growth, proliferation, adhesion and apoptosis. Tumorigenic cells possess gene mutations that alter glycosylation enzyme and substrate quantities resulting in glycosylation changes on the surface of the malignant cell. This may lead to metastasis, uncontrolled proliferation and the inhibition of apoptosis all of which are the hallmarks of cancer. The prevalence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is increasing worldwide, and as a consequence there is a need for improved diagnostic, prognostic and treatment strategies. Currently, the diagnosis of HCC utilises specific glycosylation markers in the serum of patients; however, the efficacy of diagnosis would be further enhanced by including cancer stem cell-specific and novel HCC-associated glycosylation markers. Their application will facilitate earlier, more sensitive diagnoses and reliable staging of the cancer leading to a more effective treatment.

Maraviroc (MVC), a CCR5 antagonist, reduces liver fibrosis, injury and tumour burden in mice fed a hepatocarcinogenic diet, suggesting it has potential as a cancer therapeutic. We investigated the effect of MVC on liver progenitor cells (LPCs) and macrophages as both have a role in hepatocarcinogenesis. Mice were fed the hepatocarcinogenic choline-deficient, ethionine-supplemented diet (CDE) ± MVC, and immunohistochemistry, RNA and protein expression were used to determine LPC and macrophage abundance, migration and related molecular mechanisms. MVC reduced LPC numbers in CDE mice by 54%, with a smaller reduction seen in macrophages. Transcript and protein abundance of LPC-associated markers correlated with this reduction. The CDE diet activated phosphorylation of AKT and STAT3 and was inhibited by MVC. LPCs did not express Ccr5 in our model; in contrast, macrophages expressed high levels of this receptor, suggesting the effect of MVC is mediated by targeting macrophages. MVC reduced CD45+ cells and macrophage migration in liver and blocked the CDE-induced transition of liver macrophages from an M1- to M2-tumour-associated macrophage (TAM) phenotype. These findings suggest MVC has potential as a re-purposed therapeutic agent for treating chronic liver diseases where M2-TAM and LPC numbers are increased, and the incidence of HCC is enhanced.