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Anatomical Investigation of 39 Cases of Congenital Duplication in Calves
Author(s) -
HIRAGA Takeo,
ABE Mitsuo,
IWASA Kenji,
TAKEHANA Kazushige
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
congenital anomalies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1741-4520
pISSN - 0914-3505
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-4520.1989.tb00740.x
Subject(s) - gene duplication , anatomy , diastematomyelia , biology , sex organ , spinal cord , medicine , genetics , neuroscience , gene
The anatomical features of congenital duplication in the bovine calf encountered in 39 cases over eleven years in Hokkaido were investigated macroscopically. Among the animals studied, 14 were male, 20 female and 5 of unknown gender, and the anomaly was noted in 35 Holstein‐Friesians, 3 Japanese Blacks and 1 Hereford. The duplications observed in this study were classified by four types: free asymmetrical, 4 (all 4 acardius); attached symmetrical, 25 (14 cranial duplication, 2 dipygus, 2 dicephalus dipygus, 5 thoracopagus, and 2 pygopagus); attached asymmetrical, 6 (1 parasitic dipygus, 4 notomelia, and 1 pygomelia); and miscellaneous, 4. The four acardii were holoacardii amorphi covered with skin and hair. Cranial duplication was subdivided into five types based on the number of eyes and ears. In symmetrical twins the anterior part of the body was affected in 16 out of 25 cases (64%), the posterior part in 2 out of 25 (8%) and both the anterior and posterior in 7 out of 25 (28%). All were mirror‐image duplicates on the various planes, and in some the internal organs had a center of symmetry. All four notomeli calves were female. Among the miscellaneous duplications, three were of the genital organs (male 1, and female 2) and one was a spinal cord duplication.