American scientists have for the first time transformed a chicken's beak into a structure resembling a dinosaur's long snout in a laboratory setting.

Reconstructions of the dinosaur Anchiornis (behind) and the tinamou bird, including the premax and palate. Photo: John Conway

The team of experts, including biologists Bhart-Anjan S. Bhullar and Arhat Abzhanov from Yale and Harvard Universities, conducted an experiment by transforming chicken embryos into models with snouts and palates similar to those of two small dinosaur species, Velociraptor and Archaeopteryx. Their research was published in the journal Evolution on May 12th.

In the study, they focused on DNA samples from several animal species such as desert ostriches, crocodiles, reptiles, and turtles. Experts discovered that two proteins, FGF and Wnt, were expressed differently in birds and reptiles. By using small molecule inhibitors to eliminate protein activity in chicken embryos, they were able to create a part resembling a dinosaur's snout. According to NBC News, the same method is also being used to examine other evolutionary steps.

Bhullar said the team's goal was to understand the foundational structures of a crucial evolutionary transition. They decided to modify the chicken's beak because it is one of the anatomical parts of poultry that hasn't changed much over evolution.

"The beak is a crucial part of the poultry's nutritional system, and the skeletal system's composition appears to be the most widely and thoroughly diversified, compared to flamingos, parrots, hawks, pelicans, hummingbirds, and several other species," RT quoted Bhullar as saying.

According to Vnexpress