Culture of Chicken Embryos Obtained from the Anterior Region of the Magnum of the Oviduct after Removing a Thin Layer of Dense Albumen Capsule from the Ovum

Abstract

Fertilised ova, obtained from the anterior region of the magnum of the oviduct 60-80min after the preceding egg had been laid, were cultured in vitro with dense albumen adjusted to pH 7.0 after removing a thin layer of dense albumen capsule surrounding the ovum. The ova were then cultured in recipient eggshells until hatching. Of 80 cultured embryos, about half developed to the blastoderm stage, 25% survived to day 4 of incubation, and 7.5% survived to hatching. The embryo culture technique developed in this study enables precise manipulation of the germinal disc just after ovulation.

Keywords

• chicken embryo culture
• dense albumen
• embryo manipulation
• fertilised ovum