Development of a Novel Mouse Model of Spontaneous High-Risk HPVE6/E7–Expressing Carcinoma in the Cervicovaginal Tract

Abstract

Current preclinical models for cervical cancer lack important clinical and pathologic features. To improve upon these models, we aimed to develop a novel, spontaneous HPV16-expressing carcinoma model that captures major aspects of HPV-associated cancer in the female genital tract. This novel preclinical model features (i) expression of HPV oncogenes E6 and E7 in the tumors in female reproductive tract of mice, (ii) spontaneous progression through high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL) to carcinoma, and (iii) flexibility to model cancers from different high-risk HPV genotypes. This was accomplished by injecting plasmids expressing HPV16 E6/E7-luciferase, AKT, c-myc, and Sleeping Beauty transposase into the cervicovaginal tract of C57BL/6 mice followed by electroporation. Cell lines derived from these tumors expressed HPV16 E6/E7 oncogenes, formed tumors in immunocompetent mice, and displayed carcinoma morphology. In all, this novel HPV-associated cervicogenital carcinoma model and HPV16E6/E7–expressing tumor cell line improves upon current HPV16-E6/E7–expressing tumor models. These tumor models may serve as important preclinical models for the development of therapeutic HPV vaccines or novel therapeutic interventions against HPV E6/E7–expressing tumors. This study describes the development of a clinically relevant mouse model of cervicovaginal carcinoma that progresses from high-grade lesions and recapitulates key features of human HPV⁺ cervical cancer.