Activin receptor type 2A (ACVR2A) acts as receptor for myostatin (MSTN) protein involved in inhibiting satellite cell proliferation and differentiation. The importance of the ACVR2A gene during embryonic and post-hatch periods in broiler and layer chicken was studied in an in vitro cell culture system. The expression pattern of the ACVR2A gene during embryonic stages was similar in broiler and layer lines. Post-hatch expression of the ACVR2A gene varied significantly between broiler and layer lines. Five shRNA molecules were designed to knockdown expression of the ACVR2A gene in chicken myoblast cells. The silencing of the ACVR2A gene in a cell culture system varied from 60% to 82%. It is concluded that between broiler and layer lines, there were no significant changes in expression of the ACVR2A gene during embryonic stages but it varied significantly during the post-hatch period. The shRNA showed silencing of the ACVR2A gene under an in vitro cell culture system.