The cleared mammary fat pad transplantation assay for mammary epithelial organogenesis

Abstract

Cleared mammary fat pad (MFP) transplantation has been a standard technique for studies of mammary development and cancer for several decades. The mammary gland is comprised of several fundamental components: The epithelial compartment contains basal/myoepithelial cells and luminal cells, and the stromal compartment (called the MFP) contains adipocytes, smooth muscle cells, fibroblasts, and immune cells. In 3- to 4-wk-old female mice, the mammary epithelium is concentrated very close to the nipple and has not yet grown beyond the mammary lymph node to penetrate the bulk of the MFP. This developmental feature provides an anatomical fixed point, and enables one to cut away the portion of the MFP from the nipple to the lymph node, leaving behind the majority of the MFP free of epithelium. The “cleared” MFP can serve as a supportive native microenvironment fully sufficient for the organogenesis of injected donor epithelium. Normal mammary epithelial donor cells will produce histologically and functionally normal mammary ductal epithelium several weeks posttransplant, with the exception that the ducts will not be connected to the nipple. The assay described here provides a powerful platform for assessing the developmental and tumorigenic potential of engineered cells of interest.