ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Cancer Imaging and Image-directed Interventions
Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1638869
This article is part of the Research TopicAdvancing Cancer Imaging Technologies: Bridging the Gap from Research to Clinical PracticeView all 20 articles
NAFLD Accelerates Arterial Perfusion in Rabbit VX2 Liver Tumors: A SonoVue-based contrast-enhanced ultrasound study
Provisionally accepted
- 1Shanxi Provincial People's Hospital, Taiyuan, China
- 2Department of Ultrasound, Fifth Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, China
- 3Department of Ultrasound Intervention, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, China
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To investigate whether the background of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD) affects the microcirculation characteristics of VX2 hepatomas, analyze the influence of the fatty liver background on tumor angiogenesis and proliferative activity. Methods: 24 rabbits were used to establish VX2 tumor models in the background of normal liver and NAFLD. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound was performed using SonoVue. The time-intensity curve(TIC) parameters were extracted and the expression levels of microvessel density(MVD), vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF), Ki-67 and PCNA in tumor tissues were detected and analyzed. Result: The TIC parameter arrival time(AT) and rise time(RT) of VX2 liver tumors decreased under the background of NAFLD(P<0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the tumor size, MVD, VEGF, Ki-67 and PCNA expression levels between the NAFLD group and the normal liver group(P>0.05). PI was positively correlated with MVD in both normal liver(r=0.51, P<0.05) and NAFLD(r=0.67, P<0.05) backgrounds. Conclusion: The background of NAFLD leads to an increase in the arterial flow velocity of VX2 tumors in the liver, but it has not significantly affected the level of angiogenesis and proliferation. The CEUS parameters can effectively reflect the level of tumor microangiogenesis and are effective tools for evaluating microvessels.
Keywords: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD), VX2 tumor, Contrast-enhanced ultrasound(CEUS), Microcirculation, Microvessel density(MVD)
Received: 31 May 2025; Accepted: 19 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Liu, Zhang, Lu, Fan, Chen and Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Li-ping Liu, Department of Ultrasound Intervention, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, China
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