During pregnancy, luminal and basal epithelial cells of the adult mammary gland proliferate and differentiate resulting in remodeling of the adult gland. While pathways that control this process have been characterized in the gland as a whole, the contribution of specific cell subtypes, in particular the basal compartment, remains largely unknown. Basal cells provide structural and contractile ...

Targeted mice lacking functional EGF or amphiregulin (AR) were derived and bred to the TGFalpha-knockout to generate mice lacking various combinations of the three ligands. In contrast to EGF receptor (EGFR) knockout mice, triple null mice lacking half of the EGFR ligand family were healthy and fertile, indicative of overlapping or compensatory functions among EGF family members. Nevertheless, ...

The bovine placenta produces a wide variety of proteins that are structurally and functionally similar to the pituitary proteins from the GH/PRL gene family. Bovine placental lactogen (bPL) is a 200-amino acid long glycoprotein hormone that exhibits both lactogenic and somatogenic properties. The apparent molecular masses of purified native (n) bPL molecules (31-33 kDa) exceed 23 041 Da, which ...

Epithelial cells were isolated from the undifferentiated mammary glands of mature virgin female rats, and their lipogenic characteristics were studied. These cells synthesized predominantly medium-chain fatty acids, albeit at a low rate. In contrast, whole tissue from mammary glands of virgin rats synthesized predominantly long-chain fatty acids at a relatively higher rate, indicating that the ...

To assess whether plasma prolactin (PRL) characteristics relate to lactogenesis and absence or presence of menstrual cycles, we measured bioactive PRL (BIO-PRL) using the Nb2 assay, immunoreactive PRL (IR-PRL) by radio-immunoassay, calculated equations describing the BIO-PRL-IR-PRL relationship and separated charged PRL isoforms (by chromatofocusing) in five amenorrhoeic and five cycling nursin...

Human intrauterine growth restriction is often associated with uteroplacental insufficiency and a decline in nutrient and oxygen supply to the fetus. This study investigated the effects of uteroplacental insufficiency and intrauterine growth restriction (Restricted) or reducing litter size for normally grown pups (Reduced Litter) on maternal mammary development and function, milk composition, o...

Human intrauterine growth restriction is often associated with uteroplacental insufficiency and a decline in nutrient and oxygen supply to the fetus. This study investigated the effects of uteroplacental insufficiency and intrauterine growth restriction (Restricted) or reducing litter size for normally grown pups (Reduced Litter) on maternal mammary development and function, milk composition, o...

The experiment tested the hypothesis that short-term feeding of barley just before lambing would be as effective as maize in stimulating early production of colostrum. Both grains are high in starch, and should provide a substrate for lactose which, in turn, promotes lactogenesis. Thirty-five Corriedale ewes bearing single foetuses and 25 bearing twin-foetuses from a synchronised mating were fe...