RARα1 control of mammary gland ductal morphogenesis and wnt1-tumorigenesis

Retinoic acid signaling pathways are disabled in human breast cancer suggesting a controlling role in normal mammary growth that might be lost in tumorigenesis. We tested a single receptor isotype, RARα1 (retinoic acid receptor isotype alpha, isoform 1), for its role in mouse mammary gland morphogenesis and mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV)-wingless-related MMTV integration site 1 (wnt1)-induced oncogenesis.

The role of RARα1 in mammary morphogenesis was tested in RARα1-knockout (KO) mice and in mammary tumorigenesis in bi-genic (RARα 1/KO crossed with MMTV-wnt1) mice. We used whole mounts analysis, stem cells/progenitor quantification, mammary gland repopulation, quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR), test of tumor-free survival, tumor fragments and cell transplantation.

In two genetic backgrounds (129/Bl-6 and FVB) the neo-natal RARα 1/KO-mammary epithelial tree was two-fold larger and the pubertal tree had two-fold more branch points and five-fold more mature end buds, a phenotype that was predominantly epithelial cell autonomous. The stem/progenitor compartment of the RARα 1/KO mammary, defined as CD24^low/ALDH^{high activity} was increased by a median 1.7-fold, but the mammary stem cell (MaSC)-containing compartment, (CD24^low/CD29^high), was larger (approximately 1.5-fold) in the wild type (wt)-glands, and the mammary repopulating ability of the wt-gland epithelium was approximately two-fold greater. In MMTV-wnt1 transgenic glands the progenitor (CD24^low/ALDH^{high activity}) content was 2.6-fold greater than in the wt and was further increased in the RARα 1/KO-wnt1 glands. The tumor-free survival of RARα 1/KO-wnt1 mice was significantly (P = 0.0002, Kaplan Meier) longer, the in vivo growth of RARα 1/KO-wnt1 transplanted tumor fragments was significantly (P = 0.01) slower and RARα 1/KO-wnt1 tumors cell suspension produced tumors after much longer latency.