Some studies have used physical techniques for the assessment of bone structure and
composition. However, very few studies applied multiple techniques, such as those
described below, at the same time. The aim of our study was to determine the chemical
and mineralogical/organic composition of bovine tibial bone samples using geophysical/geochemical
reference techniques. X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry (TG), Fourier-transform
infrared spectrometry with attenuated total reflectance accessory (FTIR-ATR), inductively
coupled mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and inductively coupled optical emission spectrometry
(ICP-OES) were applied to measure the organic and inorganic composition of 14 bovine
bone samples. In addition, peripheral quantitative CT (QCT) was used to assess BMD
in these bones. We were able to define the total composition of the studied bone samples.
ICP-OES and ICP-MS techniques were used to determine the major and trace element composition.
The X-ray analysis could detect inorganic crystalline compounds of bones, such as
bioapatite, and its degree of ordering, indicating whether the bones belong to a younger
or older individual. The total volatile content of the samples was calculated using
TG and resulted in about 35 weight% (wt%). This, together with the 65 wt% total resulting
from the chemical analysis (i.e., inorganic components), yielded a total approaching
100 wt%. As a large portion of the volatile content (H2O, CO2, etc.) was liberated
from the organic components and, subordinately, from bioapatite, it could be concluded
that the volatile-to-solid ratio of the examined bone samples was ~35:65. The FTIR-ATR
analysis revealed that the organic portion consists of collagens containing amide
groups, as their typical bands (OH, CH, CO, NC) were clearly identified in the infrared
spectra. Numerous parameters of bone composition correlated with BMD as determined
by QCT. In conclusion, we performed a complex evaluation of bovine bones to test multiple
geophysical/geochemical techniques in bone research in association with QCT bone densitometry.
From a medical point of view, the composition of the studied bones could be reliably
examined by these methods.
