Effects of human vascular endothelial growth factor 165 on liver regeneration in hepatocirrhosis after partial hepatectomy in mice

Objective To study the effects of exogenous vascular endothelial growth factor 165 (VEGF165) on liver regeneration and the recovery of liver function in hepatic cirrhosis after partial hepatectomy in rats.Methods The lentivirus vector containing human VEGF165 gene was constructed by using gene recombinant technology.CCl4-induced cirrhotic models in 150 rats were established.The 126 cirrhotic rats after hemihepatectomy were randomly divided into three groups:group A (VEGF165 group),group B (empty virus group) and group C (control group).The expression of VEGF165 mRNA and protein in liver tissue,liver regeneration rate,the positive rate of proliferating cell nuclear antigen ( PCNA),alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) contents in the blood of portal vein were detected before and 12 h,24 h,72 h,7 days,14 day,and 28 days after operation.Results The lentivirus vector construction was proved to be correct and could make the rats liver expressing VEGF165 mRNA and protein stably. The success rate of cirrhotic models in rats was 96.18％. The liver regeneration rate (34.98 ±6.22) ％,(62.19 ± 1.81 )％,(83.54 ±4.50) ％ and (92.23 ±4.41 ) ％ during 72 h to 28 days after operation and the positive rate of PCNA ( 18.05 ± 0.92 ) ％,(42.89 ± 5.52 ) ％,( 35.56 ±3.86) ％,( 26.37 ± 1.35 ) ％ and ( 19.48 ± 2.70) ％ during 24 h to 28 days after operation in VEGF165 group were obviously higher than those in the control group ( P ＜0.01 ).The serum concentrations of ALT (258.14± 12.94),(215.67 ±22.12),(175.92 ±8.78) and (133.26 ± 13.92) U/L and AST (553.34±14.10),(481.37 ±14.74),(425.95 ±5.04),(388.29 ± 15.99) U/L during 72 h to 28 days after operation in VEGF165 group were evidently lower than those in the control group ( P ＜ 0.01 ).Conclusion The exogenous VEGF165 has significantly positive effect on liver regeneration and the recovery of liver function after partial hepatectomy in rats with hepatic cirrhosis. Key words: Liver cirrhosis; Partial hepatectomy; Liver regeneration; Vascular endothelial growth factor 165 ; Lentiviral vector