Vol. 10, Special Issue 11 (2021)

Author(s):
Satish Kumar, Ravi Kumar, Sunil Punia and Pawan Kumar

Abstract:
Fowl production especially the chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is fast growing sector because of popularity of meat having a high content of protein and low levels of cholesterol. The fowl is an omnivorous bird and variation in food resources has resulted in its adaption to different environments leading to difference in shape and structure of the palate and oropharynx. The palate and oropharynx is the first area for food selection and intake and plays a very important role in maintenance of food in oral cavity, movement and in swallowing of bolus as a reflection of the different lifestyle of birds. The tissues of hard palate containing rostral part of median palatine ridge, region of anterior maxillary gland, rostral region of choanal cleft, region having palatine papillae. The thickness of maxillary ramphotheca and other histo-architecture was modified with the advancement of age of birds. The epithelium showed the presence of keratin layer in the areas where the blunt papillae were present and some of these papillae have the lamellated arrangement of the cells. The respiratory epithelium was modified into simple columnar type of follicle associated epithelium (FAE) where the cells similar to the M-cells were also present. Variation in keratinization of mucosal epithelium among avian species may be a reflection of the evolutionary adaptations observed between different birds.