Carcinogenetic initiation contributed by EpCAM+ cancer cells in orthotopic HCC models of immunocompetent and athymic mice

Purpose: Overexpression of epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) correlates with poor prognosis, therapeutic failure and early tumor recurrence in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. The tumor microenvironment dictates the fate of tumor-initiating cancer stem cells (CSCs); however, very limited studies were attempted to evaluate CSC tumorigenesis in the liver microenvironment. Here, we have systemically investigated the role of EpCAM+ cancer cells in tumor initiation in orthotopic HCC models. Results: Control mice and the mice with bland steatosis failed to develop tumors. In the mice with steatohepatitis, EpCAM+ CSCs have shown significantly increased ability in terms of tumor initiation and growth, compared to that with EpCAM- non-CSCs inoculation (p < 0.005). For Hep3B inoculation, EpCAM-High group has shown significantly higher tumor growth compared with EpCAM-Low (p < 0.005). For HepG2 inoculation, both EpCAM-High and EpCAM-Low groups confirmed similar tumor incidence and growth. Methods: Diet-induced compromised microenvironments were established to mimic clinical fatty liver and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) patients and the tumorigenic capabilities of Hepa1-6 cells were evaluated. CSCs were enriched by spheroid culture and labeled with copGFP for EpCAM+ CSCs and with mCherry for non-CSCs. FACS-sorted cells were inoculated into left liver lobes, and tumor growth was monitored by high-frequency ultrasound. The subpopulations of Hep3B and HepG2 cells in terms of EpCAM-Low and EpCAM-High were evaluated in the orthotopic model of athymic mice. Conclusions: NASH microenvironment promotes the EpCAM+ CSCs initiated tumorigenesis in immunocompetent mouse model. Differential EpCAM expression demonstrates distinct tumor biology in athymic mouse models.