Subpopulations of cells in immature mouse mammary gland as detected by proliferative responses to hormones in organ culture.

Organ culture of immature mouse mammary gland was used to demonstrate the presence of different epithelial cell types in this tissue. Whole glands were cultivated for 10 days in various hormone combinations, and the proliferative responses of the epithelium were evaluated by [3H]thymidine autoradiography. It was found that different regions of the gland responded to hormones dissimilarly. The large, primary duct required no added hormones for either maintenance (viability according to histological criteria) or proliferation. Secondary and tertiary ducts required insulin for maintenance and proliferation and exhibited hyperplasia when a mineralocorticoid plus either growth hormone, prolactin, or placental lactogen were also present. End buds required the most complex hormone environment for maintenance in culture, and did not exhibit proliferative activity as intense as that which occurs in vivo, even in the optimum hormone combinations used.