| [ Summary ] |
We can characterize each component in nonuniform composites without staining, separation or homogenization by employing microscopic Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), FTIR imaging or Raman spectroscopy. In the case of characterization of bone qualities, identification and structural analysis of collagen and hydroxylapatite in bones are followed by embedding in polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) and slicing by microtome. Therefore, we can quantitatively estimate the spatial distributions of collagen and hydroxylapatite in bones as well as chemical structures. In recent years, the state of collagen cross-links, hydroxyl apatite crystallinity or the hydroxylapatite/collagen ratio in bones, which are influenced by age, sex and disease such as osteoporosis, are characterized by FTIR imaging, and structural changes of hydroxylapatite associated with mechanical loads or microdamage to bones have been evaluated by remarkable shifts in Raman bands. |