Mammogenesis and changing prolactin receptor concentrations in the mammary glands of the tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii)

Abstract

All 4 mammary glands of the tammar wallaby showed a steady increase in weight and prolactin receptor concentration during the luteal phase of the oestrous cycle to reach a peak at oestrus. Removal of the corpus luteum abolished this mammogenesis, while pregnancy, which in this species is a day or so shorter than the oestrous cycle, had no effect. This provides an explanation for the previous finding that pregnancy is not a necessary pre-requisite for lactation in marsupials and that non-pregnant animals will lactate very successfully, provided the suckling stimulus is applied at the correct stage of the oestrous cycle. During lactation, only the gland supplying the test to which the pouch young was attached developed and showed any further increase in prolactin receptors; the other 3 glands remained small and inactive. These results indicate the importance of the suckling stimulus and milk withdrawal on the initiation and maintenance of lactation.