Wnt-4 expression induces a pregnancy-like growth pattern in reconstituted mammary glands in virgin mice.
Expression of Wnt-4, a member of the Wnt gene family, is induced during early pregnancy in the mouse mammary gland. To investigate the function of Wnt-4, we used a recombinant retrovirus to constitutively express the gene in transplanted mammary epithelium grown in virgin animals. In fully grown glands, Wnt-4 expression resulted in ducts that were more highly branched than normal and caused some premature alveolar development. These changes resembled those seen during pregnancy, suggesting that endogenous Wnt-4 expression may regulate epithelial branching in early pregnancy. The modified growth pattern induced by Wnt-4 expression was similar to that induced by Wnt-1, one of the members of the Wnt gene family activated by mouse mammary tumour virus. As Wnt-1 is not normally expressed in the mammary gland, it may exert its effect on the mammary gland by activating a developmental pathway normally regulated by Wnt-4.[1]References
- Wnt-4 expression induces a pregnancy-like growth pattern in reconstituted mammary glands in virgin mice. Bradbury, J.M., Edwards, P.A., Niemeyer, C.C., Dale, T.C. Dev. Biol. (1995) [Pubmed]
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