What does a aortic arches do?

Aortic arches are crucial structures in the circulatory system of vertebrates, particularly during embryonic development. They are a series of blood vessels that arise from the heart and supply blood to the developing gills in fish or to the neck and head regions in higher vertebrates. In mammals, most of these arches regress or transform into other structures, such as arteries, as the organism matures. Ultimately, they play an essential role in the development of the cardiovascular system.