The mammary gland is a unique tissue, common to all mammals, that undergoes the majority of development postnatally, particularly during puberty and pregnancy. During pregnancy, the mammary gland acquires the ability to make and secrete copious amounts of milk to provide essential nutrients and immunological protection to the newborn. The biological mechanisms that lead to milk synthesis and secretion are finely orchestrated as the composition, abundance and timing must meet the unique and specific needs of each mother-baby pair during this critical phase of infant development. This lecture will encompass the developmental mechanisms that enable the mammary gland to undergo lactation, the composition and secretion of breast milk, and a comparative analysis of the mammary gland between human and other mammalian species to better appreciate the remarkable functions of this unique tissue.
Learning Objectives:
Objective 1: List the developmental changes that occur in the mammary during puberty and pregnancy.
Objective 2: Discuss the biological mechanisms that lead to milk synthesis and secretion.
Objective 3: Discuss the biological differences in the mammary gland between human and other mammalian species.
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