Embryological and radiological study of skull development in chick and duck embryos
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.48165/ijapm.2026.42.02.17Keywords:
Skull, Chick, Embryos, RadiologyAbstract
The present study performed studies in embryological research focusing on the anatomy of the birds, particularly investigating the natural skeletal development of skull embryos in both Iraqi ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domesticus) and chicks (Gallus gallus domesticus). The study involves examining the onset of the ossification center during embryonic periods specifically the 11th, and 20th in chickens, while for duck specifically (14th, and 26th). A total of Sixty eggs from chicks and ducks were procured from the market in Basra for the study their developmental phases. These eggs are categorized into two distinct groups: one for chick eggs which were examined from days 11th and 20th days, and the other for duck eggs, analyzed from the 14th to the 26th days. The eggs were incubated at a controlled temperature at of 37-38°C with humidity maintained at 65%. They were rotated every six hours, with, except during first and last three days of incubation. Embryos were removed from eggs according to the specified intervals for chickens and ducks to determine the morphological changes in the skull and also for histological study. Samples were prepared for histological sectioning; utilizing routine staining methods, specifically (H& E) stains. Anatomical results has been discovered that certain cranial skull bones are formed through intramembranous and endochondral ossification while Histological results were examined under a microscope to comparison of the ossification centers between chickens and ducks. In chickens, the ossification centers are incomplete on day 11, while they are complete on day 20, In ducks, they are complete on day 14 and more pronounced on day 26. By the fourteenth day, the ossification centers in both chickens and ducks are completely formed (Frontal bone, Parietal bone, Occipital bone, Supraoccipital bone, Nasal bone, mandibular bone, maxillary bone).
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