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Role of suckling in regulating cell turnover and onset and maintenance of lactation in individual mammary glands of sows¹

P. K. Theil^*,2, K. Sejrsen^*, W. L. Hurley, R. Labouriau, B. Thomsen and M. T. Sørensen^*

^* Departments of Animal Health, Welfare and Nutrition, and and Genetics and Biotechnology, Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Research Centre Foulum, P.O. Box 50, DK-8830 Tjele, Denmark; and and Department of Animal Science, University of Illinois, Urbana 61801

² Corresponding author: Peter.Theil{at}agrsci.dk

This study addressed the mechanisms by which suckling regulates cell turnover and onset and maintenance of lactation of individual mammary glands of sows. The effects of no, transient (through 12 to 14 h postpartum), or regular suckling of individual glands during d 0 to 6 of lactation were studied in 5 sows. Nonsuckling was obtained by taping the glands to prevent access to the nipples. Visual scores confirmed that regularly suckled glands maintained lactation, whereas transiently suckled and nonsuckled glands regressed during lactation. Mammary gland biopsies were collected on d –5, 1, 2, 4, and 6 relative to farrowing in order to evaluate the cell turnover and to quantify the transcription of genes potentially involved in mammary cell turnover and function. The proportion of proliferating cells was greatest prepartum (13.1%). After farrowing, the proportion of proliferating cells declined in all glands, then remained low (5.6%) in nonsuckled glands and increased (P < 0.01) from an average of 7.5% on d 1 to 9.9% on d 6 in regularly suckled and transiently suckled glands. Transcriptional data were analyzed using a gamma-distributed, generalized linear mixed model. Abundance of -lactalbumin mRNA (P < 0.01) increased in regularly suckled glands within the first day of lactation and remained elevated, whereas the expression in taped glands remained at the prepartum level. Prolactin receptor mRNA abundance decreased (P < 0.001), and IGFBP-5 mRNA abundance increased (P < 0.01) in nonsuckled and transiently suckled glands after parturition compared with regularly suckled glands. Mammary mRNA abundances of IGF-I, IGF-II, type I IGF receptor, and caspase 3 were minimally or inconclusively affected by the suckling regimens. In conclusion, suckling during the first 12 to 14 h postpartum is insufficient to initiate and maintain lactation until 24 to 36 h postpartum but sufficient to induce mammary cell proliferation for at least 6 d postpartum. Furthermore, a high prolactin receptor transcription and a low IGFBP-5 transcription seem important for maintaining a functional mammary gland during lactation.

Key Words: cell turnover • gene expression • lactation • mammary gland • pig • prolactin receptor

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. T. Sorensen, J. V. Norgaard, P. K. Theil, M. Vestergaard, and K. Sejrsen Cell Turnover and Activity in Mammary Tissue During Lactation and the Dry Period in Dairy Cows J Dairy Sci, December 1, 2006; 89(12): 4632 - 4639. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]