Laminin alpha 5 is Necessary for Mammary Epithelial Growth and Function by Maintaining Luminal Epithelial Cell Identity

ABSTRACT Epithelial attachment to the basement membrane (BM) is essential for mammary gland development, yet the exact roles of specific BM components remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that expression of distinct laminin α-isoforms by luminal and basal mammary epithelial cells enforces lineage identity that is necessary for normal mammary gland growth and function. Laminin α5 (LMα5) is mainly expressed by the luminal epithelial cells, and it is necessary for pubertal mammary gland growth, pregnancy induced gland remodeling, and for alveolar function. Adhesion to LMα5 containing laminin promotes luminal traits in both luminal and basal epithelial cells, and reduces progenitor activity of basal epithelial cells. Mechanistically, we show that Lama5 loss interferes with differentiation of hormone receptor positive luminal cells, which results in reduced Wnt4 expression and defective crosstalk between luminal and basal epithelial cells during gland remodeling. Our results reveal a novel BM-mediated mechanism, which regulates mammary gland remodeling and function via specification of luminal epithelial cells.