Research note: effect of in ovo 17-beta-estradiol or tamoxifen administration on sexual differentiation of the external genitalia.

The effect of in ovo administration of tamoxifen or 17 beta-estradiol on external sexual dimorphism in chickens was investigated. In two trials, fertile eggs were injected with either tamoxifen (200 micrograms per egg) or vehicle (100 microL corn oil) on Day 1 of incubation, or with 17 beta-estradiol (20 micrograms per egg) or vehicle on Day 11 of incubation. Sexes were determined by visual inspection of the external genitalia and by gonadal identification at Day 1 posthatch. Tamoxifen injection resulted in a significantly greater number of phenotypic male identifications, with male:female ratios of 76:24 (Trial 1) and 62:38 (Trial 2) based on external genitalia phenotype. Gonadal sexing corrected these ratios to 46:54 and 44:56, resulting in genital sexing errors of 27% (Trial 1) and 18% (Trial 2). These errors were significantly higher than genital sexing errors of the chicks treated with vehicle (2 and .6% for Trials 1 and 2, respectively). In ovo administration of 17 beta-estradiol resulted in an increased number of female identifications based on genital sex determination, with male:female ratios of 37:63 (Trial 1) and 46:54 (Trial 2). Gonadal sexing corrected these ratios to 54:46 and 51:49, resulting in genital sexing errors of 10 and 6% for Trials 1 and 2, respectively. These errors were significantly higher than genital sexing errors of vehicle-treated chicks (4 and .9% for Trials 1 and 2, respectively). The results of the present study indicate that early embryonic administration of estrogen or an estrogen antagonist alters chicken external sexual dimorphism near the time of hatch.