Arterial vascularization of the pelvic limb of the reindeer fetus

Abstract

The reindeer is a representative of the order artiodactyls, most of the individuals inhabit the territory of the Northern hemisphere. It is a significant hunting and commercial species, and reindeer husbandry is the main branch of animal husbandry in the conditions of the Far North. The morphology of the reindeer has always been of interest to researchers. In different years, the architectonics of the vascular bed of the reindeer have been studied by many researchers [3, 4]. However, in the available literature sources, we have not found data concerning arterial blood supply to organs and tissues in reindeer fetuses. In the prenatal period of development, there is a restructuring of organs and tissues, and with them the vascular bed. The aim of the study was to study the arterial vascularization of the pelvic limb in a reindeer fetus, to give morphometric characteristics to the arteries. The studies were conducted on 5 reindeer fetuses at the age of 4.0-4.5 months. The fruits were delivered to the Department of Animal Anatomy of the St. Petersburg State University of Veterinary Medicine from reindeer herding farms of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The fruits were extracted after the slaughter of vazhenok for household needs. Classical methods were chosen as research methods: fine anatomical dissection, morphometry, photographing and vasorentgenography. During the study, it was found that the main arterial trunk of the pelvic limb in a reindeer fetus is the external iliac artery. Skeletotopy and angioarchitectonics of the main arteries of the pelvic limb of the reindeer fetus have typical patterns characteristic of adult animals. Morphometric parameters of the arteries are consistent with the topographic position of the muscle groups – a greater number of large arterial branches are noted in the hip area. The presence of collateral blood flow in the foot area is noted – the vessels of the dorsal and plantar surfaces are connected to each other due to the perforating metatarsal and perforating metatarsal arteries, as well as at the confluence of the axial and non-axial finger arteries.