【Animal Modeling】-Comparison of morphological characteristics of liver tissue between four commonly used experimental animals and humans

  OBJECTIVE: To provide reference for the selection of experimental animals in liver research by comparing the histomorphological similarity between the liver of four commonly used experimental animals, mouse, rat, guinea pig, and rabbit, and human liver.

  METHODS: The livers of normal mice, rats, guinea pigs, and rabbits were taken, and compared with human livers in terms of morphological characteristics, lobulation, organ coefficient, and hepatocyte nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio.

  Results: The morphology of rabbit liver was the closest to that of human, with irregular wedge-shaped and wedge-shaped, and the nuclear-to-cytoplasmic ratio of the two was also the most similar, 0.158 and 0.149, respectively. The closest, at 3.096% and 2.35%, respectively.

  Conclusion: Rabbits and guinea pigs are closer to human in histomorphological characteristics, and may be more suitable for liver-related research.