Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies in Southeast Asia. Although inactivation of pRb2/p130 has been reported in a variety of human cancers, its function in HCC has not been established. In this study we report that loss of expression of pRb2/p130 was detected by immunohistochemistry and western blotting in 15.2% (7 of 46) HCCs examined. High levels of pRb2/p130 expression were found in 84.8% (39 of 46) HCCs studied. Western blot analysis revealed that HCC had 3.5-fold higher pRb2/p130 than adjacent benign liver (ABL) tissues. 71.7% (33 of 46) of HCCs examined exhibited both nuclear and cytoplasmic staining for pRb2/p130. Cytoplasmic staining was found in 93.5% (43 of 46) of ABL tissues. Overproduction of pRb2/p130 in HepG2 cells led to growth suppression, cell cycle arrest in G0/G1, altered cell morphology, inhibition of in vitro colony formation and reduction in tumourigenicity in SCID mice. This demonstration suggests a role of pRb2/p130 as a tumour suppressor protein in HCC and the loss of this protein may lead to the development or progression of HCC. Overexpression of pRb2/p130 in HCC was, therefore, suggested to be a programmed protective response of the organism to uncontrolled proliferation.