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[Scanning electron microscopy of the inner surface of small intestine in chick embryos]
Insights
Chicken embryo midgut development reveals significant morphological changes in the mucous membrane and enterocytes between 7 and 15 days of incubation, impacting gut surface area.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Histology
- Scanning electron microscopy
Context:
- The developing gastrointestinal tract in avian species.
- Understanding embryonic development of the chicken midgut.
Purpose:
- To document the morphological changes in the chicken embryo midgut inner surface from 7 to 15 days of incubation.
- To characterize the specialization of enterocytes during this developmental window.
Summary:
- Scanning electron microscopy revealed significant morphological alterations in the chicken embryo midgut from 7 to 15 days of incubation.
- The mucous membrane surface transitions from smooth to complex folds, with enterocyte apices developing more microvilli and microplicae.
- Enterocytes become the sole epithelial cell type, exhibiting specialized apical structures.
Impact:
- Provides detailed insights into the micro-architectural development of the chicken midgut.
- Establishes a morphological baseline for further studies on avian gut function and development.
- Contributes to the understanding of epithelial cell differentiation in embryonic development.
Abstract:
The inner surface of the midgut of chicken embryos ageing between seven and fifteen days incubation has been examined by scanning electron microscope. In this period the surface of the mucous membrane undergoes significant morphological changes; in fact, while at seven days incubation it appears to be smooth and regular, in the following days it begins to show longitudinal folds increasingly higher, more numerous and complicated. Since eleven days incubation some folds take a zigzag appearance that progressively becomes more evident and extends to all the folds. In the mean time, the enterocytes undergo a gradual specialization and represent the only type of epithelial cells in this stage of development. Their apex until seven days incubation is dome-shaped, provided with short microvilli and separated from the surrounding cells by deep circular grooves. About thirteen days the apex appears to be less swollen, with longer and more numerous microvilli and bounded by microplicae arranged in an hexagonal disposition.