Different growth factors stimulate cell division of rat mammary epithelial, myoepithelial, and stromal cell lines in culture.

A number of single-cell-cloned cell lines have been used to examine the growth-promoting effects of putative mammotrophic agents on the various cell types in normal and neoplastic rat mammary glands. A partially purified novel pituitary-derived growth factor stimulates only cuboidal epithelial cells to divide whereas fibroblast growth factor (FGF) stimulates the growth of stromal and myoepithelial-like cells. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) has a widespread but variable growth-stimulating action, but prolactin and growth hormone are essentially inactive when added alone at a concentration of 5 micrograms/ml. Phosphoethanolamine stimulates the growth of one epithelial cell line and a derivative myoepithelial-like cell line, but is inactive on the other cell lines tested. The use of defined cloned cell lines provides a direct and reproducible assay for the identification and purification of inducers of mammary growth.