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Figure 7


Fig. 7. Accelerated mammary ductal elongation in Timp3–/– virgin glands. (A) Representative images of mammary gland whole mounts (n=4) during pubertal morphogenesis in WT and Timp3–/– mammary glands. Bars, 1 mm. A significant increase was seen in (B) ductal length at 20 (*P=0.016), 30 (**P=0.019) and 40 (***P=0.022) days of age. There were no statistically significant differences in (C) numbers of ducts and (D) branches per duct between WT and Timp3–/– mammary glands ({square}, WT; {blacksquare}, Timp3–/–). (E) Implantation of recombinant TIMP-containing pellets (blue) or control pellets (red) into contralateral WT glands revealed effects of individual TIMPs on mammary morphogenesis. (F) TIMP1, TIMP3 and TIMP4 retarded mammary ductal elongation by 12% (P=0.04), 25% (P=0.07) and 19% (P=0.002), relative to contralateral glands, respectively. TIMP2 promoted ductal elongation by 13% relative to contralateral gland (P<0.05). Student's t-test was performed to assess statistical significance between WT and Timp3–/– mammary glands. Values are expressed as mean ± s.e.m.