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A mammary gland is an exocrine gland in humans and other mammals that produces milk to feed young offspring.Mammals get their name from the Latin word mamma, "breast".The mammary glands are arranged in organs such as the breasts in primates (for example, humans and chimpanzees), the udder in ruminants (for example, cows, goats, sheep, and deer), and the dugs of other animals (for example, dogs ...
Lactiferous ducts are ducts that converge and form a branched system connecting the nipple to the lobules of the mammary gland.When lactogenesis occurs, under the influence of hormones, the milk is moved to the nipple by the action of smooth muscle contractions along the ductal system to the tip of the nipple.
A mammary alveolus (pl.: alveoli, from Latin alveolus, "little cavity") is a small cavity or sac found in the mammary gland. [1] [2] Mammary alveoli are the site of milk production and storage in the mammary gland. [1] [2] Mammary alveoli cluster into groups called mammary lobules, and each breast may contain 15 to 20 of these lobules.
An example of true apocrine glands is the mammary glands, responsible for secreting breast milk. [2] Apocrine glands are also found in the anogenital region and axillae. [3] Apocrine secretion is less damaging to the gland than holocrine secretion (which destroys a cell) but more damaging than merocrine secretion .
When the breast is stimulated, prolactin levels in the blood rise, peak in about 45 minutes, and return to the pre-breastfeeding state about three hours later. The release of prolactin triggers the cells in the alveoli to make milk. Prolactin also transfers to the breast milk.
The mammary ridge is primordial for the mammary glands on the chest in humans, and is associated with mammary gland and breast development.. In human embryogenesis, the mammary ridge usually appears as a narrow, microscopic ectodermal thickening during the first seven weeks of pregnancy and grows caudally as a narrow, linear ridge. [1]
The suckling stimulus also triggers the release of oxytocin from the posterior pituitary gland, which triggers milk let-down: Prolactin controls milk production (lactogenesis) but not the milk-ejection reflex; the rise in prolactin fills the breast with milk in preparation for the next feed. The posterior pituitary produces a yet-unidentified ...
Breast milk (sometimes spelled as breastmilk) or mother's milk is milk produced by the mammary glands in the breast of female humans. Breast milk is the primary source of nutrition for newborn infants , comprising fats, proteins, carbohydrates, and a varying composition of minerals and vitamins.