Functional Mammary Gland Organoids From Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

Human iPSC-derived mammary organoids reproducibly form polarized basal (KRT14+, TP63+) and luminal (KRT8+, GATA3+) layers, with ~25% luminal cells expressing ER.

• Why it matters: A tractable in vitro system has been missing for modeling sequential human mammary lineage restriction and hormone-responsive epithelial development.
• What they did: The study used a stepwise, defined-medium differentiation protocol to drive hiPSCs through non-neural ectoderm and mammary placode induction, then lineage maturation, followed by organoid assays and single-cell transcriptomics.
• The result: MGOs accumulated lipids, expressed {beta}-casein after prolactin stimulation, retained lineage fidelity after serial passaging, and formed branched ductal networks in cleared mouse mammary fat pads.

AI summary of the abstract · may contain errors · not medical advice · read the paper.