Absence of Either Ripk3 or Mlkl Reduces Incidence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Independent of Liver Fibrosis

• Published in: Molecular cancer research Vol. 21; no. 9; pp. 933 - 946
• Main Authors: Mohammed, Sabira, Thadathil, Nidheesh, Ohene-Marfo, Phoebe, Tran, Albert L, Van Der Veldt, Michael, Georgescu, Constantin, Oh, Sangphil, Nicklas, Evan H, Wang, Dawei, Haritha, Nair Hariprasad, Luo, Wenyi, Janknecht, Ralf, Miller, Benjamin F, Wren, Jonathan D, Freeman, Willard M, Deepa, Sathyaseelan S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Association for Cancer Research 01.09.2023
• Subjects: Animals; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - pathology; Cell Fate Decisions; Choline - adverse effects; Choline - metabolism; Diet, High-Fat - adverse effects; Female; Incidence; Inflammation - pathology; Liver - pathology; Liver Cirrhosis - genetics; Liver Cirrhosis - metabolism; Liver Cirrhosis - pathology; Liver Neoplasms - pathology; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease - genetics; Receptor-Interacting Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases - genetics; Receptor-Interacting Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases - metabolism
• ISSN: 1541-7786; 1557-3125
• DOI: 10.1158/1541-7786.MCR-22-0820

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the etiologies that contribute to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and chronic inflammation is one of the proposed mediators of HCC. Because necroptosis is a cell death pathway that induces inflammation, we tested whether necroptosis-induced inflammation contributes to the progression of NAFLD to HCC in a mouse model of diet-induced HCC. Male and female wild-type (WT) mice and mouse models where necroptosis is blocked (Ripk3-/- or Mlkl-/- mice) were fed either a control diet, choline-deficient low-fat diet or choline-deficient high-fat diet. Blocking necroptosis reduced markers of inflammation [proinflammatory cytokines (TNFα, IL6, and IL1β), F4/80+ve macrophages, CCR2+ve infiltrating monocytes], inflammation-associated oncogenic pathways (JNK, PD-L1/PD-1, β-catenin), and HCC in male mice. We demonstrate that hepatic necroptosis promotes recruitment and activation of liver macrophages leading to chronic inflammation, which in turn trigger oncogenic pathways leading to the progression of NAFLD to HCC in male mice. Whereas in female mice, blocking necroptosis reduced HCC independent of inflammation. Our data show a sex-specific difference in the development of inflammation, fibrosis, and HCC in WT mice. However, blocking necroptosis reduced HCC in both males and females without altering liver fibrosis. Thus, our study suggests that necroptosis is a valid therapeutic target for NAFLD-mediated HCC. Necroptosis is a major contributor to hepatic inflammation that drives the progression of NAFLD to HCC and therefore represents a valid target for NAFLD-mediated HCC.