Thoracic Aorta and Its Variants

The cardiovascular system is the first system in the body to reach a functional state, at around the 21st and 22nd day of gestation. As a result, any aortic arch anatomical variant results from the aberrant embryologic migration and/or differentiation of undifferentiated cardiac cell precursors. Initially, six paired aortic channels encircle the embryonic pharynx. They supply the developing pharyngeal arches and arise from the aortic sac. These channels run dorsally, embedded in the mesenchyme of the pharyngeal arches, and terminate in the right and left dorsal aortae.