ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To understand the molecular mechanism and find out the responsible genes for liver cancer by exploring the regulation of gene expression during hepatocarcinogenesis in tree shrew induced by aflatoxin B1 (AFB1).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The tissues from tree shrew of different stages during the pathogenesis and development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), liver cancer tissue, para-cancerous tissues, pre-cancerous liver tissues, liver tissues of the same stage from normal controls and the liver tissues taken before AFB1-treatment were analyzed for gene expression by cDNA array.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Four patterns of gene expression were observed during AFB1-induced hepatocarcinogenesis. They were: genes up-regulated in HCC tissue and para-cancerous tissue, especially in HCC tissues; genes with similar expressing level in both HCC tissue and para-cancerous tissue, but higher than that in pre-cancerous tissue; genes down-regulated in HCC tissue; genes up-regulated before HCC appeared but down-regulated after HCC appeared.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Dynamic observation of gene expression will be beneficial to elucidate the mechanisms of AFB1- induced hepatocarcinogenesis and locate the responsible genes.</p>