title: Organotypic growth and differentiation of human mammary gland in sponge-gel matrix supported histoculture.
abstract: Blocks of breast tissue obtained during radical mastectomies from 23 patients with mammary gland carcinomas were used for cultivation in native-state, gel-supported histocultures. We show that the human mammary gland can be successfully maintained in this system so that normal epithelial breast structures proliferate and undergo differentiation for several weeks and a well-developed system of ducts and lobules is formed. Using antibodies to individual keratins 17 and 8 we have shown for the first time that ducts and alveoles developing in vitro undergo differentiation into the lining epithelium and myoepithelium in the same way as mammary gland epithelium in vivo. Growth of epithelial structures in vitro is also accompanied by the development of continuous basal membrane.
authors: Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, 119899, Moscow, Russia.
authors: B A
authors: BA
authors: Baibakov
authors: Oncological Research Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors: T A
authors: TA
authors: Chipisheva
authors: Oncological Research Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors: V I
authors: VI
authors: Guelstein
authors: Oncological Research Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors: V D
authors: VD
authors: Ermilova
authors: Oncological Research Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors: E B
authors: EB
authors: Polevaya
authors: Oncological Research Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors: J M
authors: JM
authors: Vasiliev
authors: Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, 119899, Moscow, Russia.|Laboratory of Theoretical and Physical Biology, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH, 20892, Bethesda, MD.
authors: L B
authors: LB
authors: Margolis
keywords: differentiation; epithelium; histoculture; keratin; mammary gland