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Biomedical subjects

F Beckmann

Publications and source records attributed to F Beckmann.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

Inhomogeneous plastic flow investigated by X-ray absorption microtomography of an aluminium alloy containing marker particles.

By combining a synchrotron X-ray source and the microtomography technique, the displacement gradient tensor components can be measured directly throughout the volume of a metal sample containing highly absorbing marker particles to detect material flow. The present article describes application of these techniques to compression of a rectangular Al-W specimen with a central hole. The results show that the externally imposed axial displacement gradient is accommodated mainly in two 45 degrees shear bands passing through the hole. A simple deformation analysis provides insight into shear band formation.

Journal Article↗

Synchrotron radiation-based microtomography of alveolar support tissues.

OBJECTIVES: To study the alveolar support structures using synchrotron radiation (SR)-based microtomography with particular focus on the alveolar surface. DESIGN: High-resolution microtomography of jaw segments of various species and subsequent three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction. SETTING AND SAMPLE POPULATION: Microtomography was performed at the DORIS-ring of the synchrotron facility of HASYLAB/DESY in Hamburg, Germany. The samples consisted of human, simian and porcine jaw segments. RESULTS: With SR being monochromatic, no beam-hardening artifacts could occur and the grey values in the scans were therefore directly related to the local tissue densities. Apart from the mineralized tissues, the beam energy was low enough to allow for the visualization of soft tissues like the fibers of the periodontal ligament (PDL) and blood vessels. 3D reconstructions of the alveolar bone showed that it can be rough and sharply edged. Furthermore, an intricate network of marrow cavities and blood vessels penetrates its surface. Differences in the local grey value distribution in the alveolar bone pointed to remodeling activity in the close vicinity of the PDL. CONCLUSION: The assumption that the alveolar bone surface is smooth and continuous is not correct. This means that even small orthodontic loads can already give rise to high local stresses and strains in the bone and thus initiate remodeling processes.

Alveolar Process↗

Comparison of microfocus- and synchrotron X-ray tomography for the analysis of osteointegration around Ti6Al4V implants.

Micro-computed tomography (microCT) provides quantitative three-dimensional information of bone around titanium implants similar to classical histology. The study, based on an animal model, containing cuboid-shaped biofunctionalised Ti6Al4V implants with surrounding bone after 4 weeks, is performed using 3 microCT-systems with X-ray tubes, one synchrotron-radiation-based microCT-system (SRmicroCT), and classical histology. Although the spatial resolution of the microCT-systems is comparable, only the results of SRmicroCT agree with results of classical histology. The X-ray tube sources give rise to huge artefacts in the tomograms (interface scattering, beam hardening), which impaired the quantitative analysis of bone up to about 200microm from the implant surface. Due to the non-destructive character of microCT the specimens can be subsequently examined by classical histology without restriction. The quantitative comparison of bone formation uncovers the strong dependence of the newly formed bone from the selected slice. This implies the necessity of 3D analysis. SRmicroCT and classical histology prove that surface modifications of the titanium implant significantly influence the bone formation. Using SRmicroCT, the preparation artefacts due to cutting and polishing are excluded.

Animals↗

A novel method to produce hydroxyapatite objects with interconnecting porosity that avoids sintering.

Porous objects of carbonated apatite were prepared by mixing polyvinyl alcohol fibres (PVA) and sodium chloride as porogens with nanocrystalline carbonated apatite powder. After cold isostatic pressing (CIP) and dissolving the porogens, the bioceramic showed an interconnecting porosity with pore diameters in the range of 250-400 microm. The method can be transposed to any material that is insoluble in water (like many polymers). Such objects are promising for bone regeneration because the interconnecting porosity in carbonated apatite provides a good environment for bone attachment and ingrowth.

Biocompatible Materials↗

Multiple-beam X-ray interferometry for phase-contrast microtomography.

The first successful operation of an X-ray interferometer under conditions of non-planar three-beam diffraction for phase-contrast X-ray microtomography is reported. Intrinsic phase differences of the reflections used cancel from the three-dimensional phase image of the specimen. With simultaneous hkl and hkl reflections of a synchrotron radiation beam in a side-by-side geometry, the size of the usable field of view is doubled and the investigated specimen volume is increased by a factor of four. As an example, the reconstructed slice of a mouse kidney is shown in phase contrast at 71 keV. Optimized choices of three-beam reflections and matching interferometer geometries useful for applications are presented.

Animals↗

Three-dimensional imaging of nerve tissue by x-ray phase-contrast microtomography.

We show that promising information about the three-dimensional (3D) structure of a peripheral nerve can be obtained by x-ray phase-contrast microtomography (p-microCT; Beckmann, F., U. Bonse, F. Busch, and O. Günnewig, 1997. J. Comp. Assist. Tomogr. 21:539-553). P-microCT measures electronic charge density, which for most substances is proportional to mass density in fairly good approximation. The true point-by-point variation of density is thus determined in 3D at presently 1 mg/cm3 standard error (SE). The intracranial part of the rat trigeminal nerve analyzed for the presence of early schwannoma "microtumors" displayed a detailed density structure on p-microCT density maps. The average density of brain and nerve tissue was measured to range from 0.990 to 0.994 g/cm3 and from 1.020 to 1.035 g/cm3, respectively. The brain-nerve interface was well delineated. Within the nerve tissue, a pattern of nerve fibers could be seen that followed the nerve axis and contrasted against the bulk by 7 to 10 mg/cm3 density modulation. Based on the fact that regions of tumor growth have an increased number density of cell nuclei, and hence of the higher z element phosphorus, it may become possible to detect very early neural "microtumors" through increases of average density on the order of 10 to 15 mg/cm3 by using this method.

Animals↗

[New possibilities for structural analysis of bone biopsies using microcomputer tomography (muCT)].

The combined histological and microcomputed analysis of human iliac crest biopsies leads to major advances in our understanding of three-dimensional bone architecture. Microcomputed tomography avoids the time-consuming reconstruction and artifacts of serial sections. Furthermore, its high resolution allows the recording of structural differences as low as 10 microns. Thus, three-dimensional analysis in combination with histological evaluation of cellular dynamics facilitates earlier and easier recording of changes of cancellous bone.

Biopsy↗

3D computed X-ray tomography of human cancellous bone at 8 microns spatial and 10(-4) energy resolution.

Human cancellous bone was imaged and its absorptive density accurately measured in three dimensions (3D), nondestructively and at high spatial resolution by means of computerized microtomography (microCT). Essential for achieving the resolution and accuracy was the use of monoenergetic synchrotron radiation (SR) which avoided beam hardening effects, secured excellent contrast conditions including the option of energy-modulated contrast, and yet provided high intensity. To verify the resolution, we selected objects of approximately 8 micron size that could be observed on tomograms and correlated them in a unique manner to their counter images seen in histological sections prepared from the same specimen volume. Thus we have shown that the resolution expected from the voxel size of 8 microns used in the microCT process is in effect also attained in our results. In achieving the present results no X-ray-optical magnification was used. From microCT studies of composites (Bonse et al., X-ray tomographic microscopy (XTM) applied to carbon-fibre composites. In: Materlik G, ed. HASYLAB Jahresbericht 1990. Hamburg: DESY, 1990; 567-568) we know that by including X-ray magnification a resolution below 2 microns is obtained. Therefore, with foreseeable development of our microCT method, the 3D and nondestructive investigation of structures in mineralized bone on the 2 micron level is feasible. For example, it should be possible to study tomographically the 3D distribution and amount of osteoclastic resorption in the surrounding bone structure.

Aged↗

X-ray microtomography (microCT) using phase contrast for the investigation of organic matter.

PURPOSE: We show that microtomography (microCT) using synchrotron radiation (SR) can be extended to include X-ray phase contrast, which is two to three orders of magnitude more sensitive than conventional attenuation contrast and better suited for the investigation of specimens consisting chiefly of light elements for photon energies ranging at least from 1 to 100 keV. METHOD: Phase contrast is generated by placing the specimen in one of the interfering beams of an X-ray interferometer. With use of 12-keV X-rays, phase projections of the specimen are recorded at 180 or 360 angular settings equally spaced between 0 and 180 degrees. One phase projection consists of four pairs of "associated" radiograms in the sense that one is taken with and the other without the specimen in the beam. Between pairs a parallel-sided phase-shifter plate is rotated for changing the relative phase of the two interfering beams by multiples of pi/2 rad. By calculating phase-weighted sums of all associated pairs of radiograms, true phase-shift projections are obtained for all angular settings of the specimen, which are then reconstructed. RESULTS: Three-dimensional images have been obtained from rat cerebrum and rat trigeminal nerve, showing cell structures at 8- to 15-micron spatial resolution. Gray and white matter of cerebrum and neurons in the trigeminal nerve are clearly visible. CONCLUSION: X-ray phase-contrast microCT is becoming a valuable tool for studies of organic samples in medicine and biology.

Animals↗