Influence of epidermal growth factor on the maturation of the fetal mouse duodenum in organ culture.

The purpose of this work was to study the direct influence of epidermal growth factor (EGF) on the maturation of the fetal mouse duodenum in organ culture. Duodenal explants, resected at 17 days of gestation, were cultured during 48 h at 37 degrees C in Leibovitz L-15 serum-free medium alone or supplemented with EGF (100 ng/ml). Differentiation of absorptive cells was evaluated by measuring brush border hydrolytic activities. After 48 h of culture with and without EGF, villous architecture and the fine structural characteristics of the tissues are preserved. In control explants, the level of alkaline phosphatase, maltase, trehalase, and sucrase activities as well as the protein and DNA contents remain comparable to the values measured in 17-day explants at the beginning of the culture period, while lactase activity falls drastically. In explants cultured with EGF, the level of alkaline phosphatase, maltase, and trehalase activities and the protein contents significantly increase while sucrase activity and DNA contents are unchanged, and lactase activity remains under the onset level. From these results, it was concluded that EGF influences directly the maturation of some brush border enzymes in the duodenum during the fetal period.