Pathology of cloaca Anomalies with case correlation

During the 4th week of human embryo development, a transient common channel known as a cloaca is formed from which three cavities with three external orifices arises. Persistence of the common channel/ cloaca in females occurs when the rectum, vagina, and urethra, fail to develop separately and instead drain via a single common channel into the perineum. In our previous institutional studies, Runck et al.1 compared human and mouse cloaca development and found early mis-patterning of the embryonic cloaca deranged hedgehog and Bone Morphogenetic Proteins (BMP) signaling.

Source: Seminars in Pediatric Surgery - November 9, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Anita Gupta, Andrea Bischoff Source Type: research