Sensitivity and stability of Balb/c, C57BL/6J, and ICR mice to the acute liver injury induced by concanavalin A

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is an autoimmune disease mediated by abnormal autoimmune. The pathogenesis and pathological manifestation of immune-mediated liver injury, induced by concanavalin A (ConA) in mice, closely parallel those observed in human AIH. However, the sensitivity and stability of mice to ConA vary depending on the strain and sex of the mice. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the sensitivity and stability of Balb/c, C57BL/6J, and ICR mice to ConA-induced acute liver injury. In this study, the mice in ConA group were injected with ConA (15 mg/kg·bw) via tail vein. After 8 h, the blood, liver, and spleen were collected for subsequent analysis. The liver index of Balb/c mice was increased (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels of male C57BL/6J mice in ConA-treated group were the highest among the three strains of mice, followed by female Balb/c mice (<i>P</i> < 0.05). After ConA challenge, ICR, Balb/c, and C57BL/6J mice (both male and female) appeared markedly inflammatory cell infiltration and hepatocyte necrosis. Furthermore, hemorrhagic necrosis is more severe in females than in males. Lastly, male C57BL/6J and female Balb/c mice had the lowest coefficient of variation in serum ALT, AST, and LDH activities, while female Balb/c mice had the minimum coefficient of variation of the liver index, suggesting that they have good stability to ConA. Altogether, our study found that Balb/c female and C57BL/6J male mice have high sensitivity and good stability to ConA challenge, which were suitable for mimicking the pathology of AIH in humans.