[Action of L-azetidine in in vitro culture on the formation of uropygial invaginations and the branching of glandular buds in the duck embryo].

Azetidine-2-carboxylic acid, a proline analogue which depresses collagen deposition in extracellular spaces, stops uropygial invaginations morphogenesis and epithelial buds branching in vitro. The results show that uninterrupted collagen synthesis is necessary for preen gland morphogenesis.