Hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (HSOS) is a serious side effect of oxaliplatin (OXA) treatment. The present study aimed to establish a reproducible mouse model of OXA-induced HSOS and to preliminarily explore the underlying molecular mechanisms using mRNA microarray analysis. A total of 45 C57BL/6 male mice were randomly divided into five groups: Control, 5 mg/kg OXA, 10 mg/kg OXA, 15 mg/kg OXA and 20 mg/kg OXA. The mice were respectively injected intraperitoneally with 5% glucose solution, or 5, 10, 15 or 20 mg/kg OXA solution once a week for 6 consecutive weeks. The body weight of the mice was recorded every day. The serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were determined. Hematoxylin and eosin staining, Sirius red staining and scanning electron microscopy were used to identify pathological changes. mRNA microarray was used to analyze changes in the gene expression profiles mainly from the functional aspects of Gene Ontology and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes. The oxidation mechanism was verified by measuring oxidative stress-related markers and reactive oxygen species with dihydroethidium probe technology, according to the microarray results. Among all of the OXA groups, 10 mg/kg OXA resulted in an acceptable survival rate of 78%. The mice showed obvious splenomegaly, increases in serum levels of ALT and AST, aggravation of liver pathological injuries and hepatic sinusoidal injuries. The microarray results suggested that mRNA expression changes after OXA treatment were associated with 'oxidative stress', 'coagulation function', 'steroid anabolism' and 'pro-inflammatory responses'. The results confirmed that OXA aggravated oxidative damage in the livers of the mice. The present study successfully established a mouse model of OXA-induced HSOS and preliminarily analyzed the underlying molecular mechanisms involved, thus laying a foundation for a subsequent in-depth study.