Development of

Musculoskeletal System
Limbs - appear as small projections on the ventrolateral body
wall towards the end of 4th week.
The upper limb buds appear 25th-27th day, the lower limb
buds appear ~2 days later

The upper limb bud is opposite C5-T1 segs.

The lower limb bud is opposite L4-S2 segs.
 The Limb Buds
Each limb bud has a core of mesoderm derived from:
o somatic layer of lateral plate mesoderm (the source of
skeletal elements – bones, ligaments and tendons)

Myotome Dermatome

Sclerotome
o myotomes of paraxial mesoderm (source of
muscular elements of the limbs) covered with
ectoderm
 The Limb Buds

At the tip of each limb bud is a thickening of ectoderm

the Apical Ectodermal Ridge which initiates and
controls growth and differentiation of bones and
muscles
 The Limbs
The limb buds elongate & the distal part flattens to form
the Hand / Foot Plate by week 5-6

The hand / foot plates show Digital Rays which

differentiate into digits. The mesenchyme between the
digits degenerates (apoptosis) by week 8 and the digits are
formed.

Bones develop from the core mesoderm by Endochondral

Ossification, except the Clavicle which is formed by
Intramembranous Ossification
 Development of the limbs

o Hand plates (A) and

footplates (B) is
present by the 6th
week. A
o separated from the
proximal segment by a
circular constriction.
o second constriction B
divides the proximal
portion into two
segments
 Hand plate formed

Week 5
35 days

Then, indentations
appear
o Notching between
digital rays
o 2ndry to apoptosis
of intervening
mesenchymal
tissues
o Five segments of
ridge ectoderm one
for each .
 Digital ray
Notch between
digital rays

Digital rays appear

in hand plate

Week 6
44 days
Synovial joints appear between the
bones early 3rd month
Rotation of limbs- The upper limbs
rotate laterally 90 degrees: The lower
limbs rotate medially 90 degrees
o Precursor cell come
from lateral plate
mesoderm(somatic ).
o At the end of the 4th
week sclerotome cells
differentiate into
mesenchymal cells.
o They may differentiate
into fibroblasts,
chondroblasts, or
osteoblasts
o Mesenchyme in the
buds begins to
condense and these
cells differentiate
into chondrocytes.
o By the 6th week of
development the
first hyaline
cartilage model
appears.
 Ossification of the bones of the extremities

o Endochondral
ossification
o begins by the end of the
embryonic period.
o Primary ossification
centers are present in
diaphysis of all long
bones of the limbs by the
12th week.
 At birth

o diaphysis of the bone is

completely ossified.
o epiphyses, are still
cartilaginous.
o Shortly thereafter,
ossification centers arise in
the epiphyses.
o cartilage plate between the
diaphyseal and epiphyseal.
 Ossification
o Intramembranous Ossification
Mesenchymal cells condense and form a
membranous sheath within which bone
develops
o Endochondral Ossification
Mesenchymal cells give rise to a cartilaginous
model, which subsequently ossifies
 Clinical notes
oAbsence of a muscle – eg. pectoralis
major, palmaris longus, or quadriceps femoris
o Congenital torticollis (wry neck) due to birth
injury, the sterncleidomastoid undergoes contracture
& the neck is flexed to the same side and the face is
tilted to the opposite side.
oAccessory muscles - occur due to early splitting of
a pre muscle mass
 Clinical notes
o Critical period in limb development (24-36)
days
oAmelia- complete absence of limb
oMeromelia- partial absence
oPhocomelia- absence of long bones

(Develop due to amniotic bands)

 Thalidomide

Meromelia
Amelia
Syndactyly
Polydactyly
Cleft Hand and Foot
club foot (Talipes
Equinovarus)

Rickets
Vitamin D deficiency
impaired calcium absorption
Short limbs, bowed
Achondroplasia
Autosomal dominant disorder
Growth factor receptor (FGFR-3)
mutation
Early closue of epiphyseal plates