Andronowski Janna M, Crowder Christian, Soto Martinez Miriam
Department of Biology, The University of Akron, Akron, OH, USA.
Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, Houston, TX, USA.
Forensic Sci Res. 2018 Oct 3;3(4):278-293. doi: 10.1080/20961790.2018.1483294. eCollection 2018.
Bone is a mechanically active, three-dimensionally (3D) complex, and dynamic tissue that changes in structure over the human lifespan. Bone tissue exists and remodels in 3D and changes over time, introducing a fourth dimension. The products of the remodelling process, secondary and fragmentary osteons, have been studied substantially using traditional two-dimensional (2D) techniques. As a result, much has been learned regarding the biological information encrypted in the histomorphology of bone, yielding a wealth of information relating to skeletal structure and function. Three-dimensional imaging modalities, however, hold the potential to provide a much more comprehensive understanding of bone microarchitecture. The visualization and analysis of bone using high-resolution 3D imaging will improve current understandings of bone biology and have numerous applications in both biological anthropology and biomedicine. Through recent technological advancements, we can hone current anthropological applications of the analysis of bone microstructure and accelerate research into the third and fourth dimensional realms. This review will explore the methodological approaches used historically by anthropologists to assess cortical bone microstructure, spanning from histology to current imaging modalities, discuss the growing capabilities of imaging, and conclude with an introduction of novel non-histological modalities for investigating bone quality.
骨骼是一种具有机械活性、三维复杂且动态变化的组织，其结构在人类生命周期中会发生改变。骨组织以三维形式存在并进行重塑，且随时间变化，引入了第四个维度。重塑过程的产物，即继发性和碎片性骨单位，已通过传统二维技术进行了大量研究。因此，人们对骨组织形态学中加密的生物学信息有了很多了解，产生了大量与骨骼结构和功能相关的信息。然而，三维成像模式有可能提供对骨微结构更全面的理解。使用高分辨率三维成像对骨骼进行可视化和分析，将改善当前对骨生物学的理解，并在生物人类学和生物医学中具有众多应用。通过最近的技术进步，我们可以完善当前对骨微结构分析的人类学应用，并加速对第三维和第四维领域的研究。本综述将探讨人类学家历史上用于评估皮质骨微结构的方法，从组织学到当前的成像模式，讨论成像不断发展的能力，并最后介绍用于研究骨质量的新型非组织学模式。
