Development of a new animal model of liver cirrhosis in swine.

This study aimed to develop a new experimental model of liver cirrhosis in swine by using carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4)) and ethanol. Liver cirrhosis was induced by intraperitoneal injection of CCl(4) twice a week for 9 weeks. Maize flour was the only food provided and the animals drunk a 5% alcohol-water mixture. Alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), albumin, bilirubin and portal venous pressure (PVP) levels were determined throughout CCl(4) treatment. The animals were sacrificed under general anesthesia at week 9 and liver samples were collected for histological analysis. 83.3% of the swine had liver cirrhosis and 33.3% had died. There was no change of body weight during the course of the experiment (p > 0.05). The AST and ALT levels increased significantly in the early stage of the study but had a trend to decrease during the late phase. The level of bilirubin increased greatly and albumin decreased during the whole experiment (p < 0.05). PVP levels decreased in the early stage in CCl(4)-treated swine, but increased significantly at the late phase. In conclusion, this study was successful in producing liver cirrhosis and offers an ideal experimental model for observing surgical therapeutic efficacy.