Effect of hormones on genes related to hormone receptors and milk component synthesis in bovine mammary epithelial cells grown in two and three dimensional culture system

In this study, the effects of hormones (prolactin, insulin, and growth hormone) on triglyceride (TG) content and the mRNA expression of genes involved in hormone receptor and milk component synthesis were evaluated in bovine mammary epithelial cells that were cultured in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) systems. TG content was measured with a TG determination kit, and expression of genes were measured with real-time quantitative polymerase chain reactions (RT-qPCR).The expression of these genes and TG content increased significantly in the 3D model compared to those in the 2D model. Moreover, hormone supplementation markedly upregulated the mRNA expression of genes related to hormone receptors and milk component synthesis. A pyramid and interaction effect among hormone supplementation and culture model was obvious. The 3D model is more conducive to study the effect of hormones on genes expression, especially for genes expression relies on response to lactogenic hormones.