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Lobes of mammary gland: anatomy, location and function

The mammary gland is divided into 15–20 lobes that produce milk. Each lobe is a compound tubuloalveolar gland: its alveoli secrete milk under the influence of prolactin.

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Highlighted in the model: Lobes of mammary gland. Click any part to read about it, or switch off “Highlight topic” to see the whole body. Use Male / Female to switch bodies. 3D data: BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science; knee ligaments, menisci, tonsils, palate and parotid glands from the Human Reference Atlas Visible Human Male model and female parts from its Visible Human Female model (HuBMAP / NIH); lung lobes built from the BodyParts3D chest; all CC BY 4.0; meshes simplified and recoloured. The female body shares the male skeleton, muscles and organs except its pelvis, reproductive organs, breasts, bladder, urethra and skin.

Lobes of mammary gland at a glance

What it is
The mammary gland is divided into 15–20 lobes that produce milk.
Location
They are arranged like the spokes of a wheel around the nipple, separated by fat and fibrous septa.
Function
Each lobe is a compound tubuloalveolar gland: its alveoli secrete milk under the influence of prolactin.
Body system
Reproductive · paired (left and right) · female body
FMA ID
FMA76440 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)

Key facts

  • Each lobe is made of many lobules, which grow greatly in pregnancy.
  • Each lobe drains through its own lactiferous duct.

Clinical relevance

Most breast cancers arise in the terminal duct–lobular unit, where the smallest ducts meet the lobules.

Structures next to the lobes of mammary gland

The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:

References

  1. Foundational Model of Anatomy: Lobes of mammary gland (FMA76440). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
  2. OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §27.2 Anatomy and Physiology of the Ovarian Reproductive System (The Breasts). Rice University, 2022.
  3. Mitsuhashi N. et al. (2009). BodyParts3D: 3D structure database for anatomical concepts. Nucleic Acids Research 37, D782–D785. Data © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0.
  4. Browne K., Schlehlein H. 3D Reference Organ Set for United, Female (Visible Human Female). Human Reference Atlas 3D Reference Object Library, HuBMAP / NIH. Data from the NLM Visible Human Project. CC BY 4.0.

Related anatomy

Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.