Post by PSI Paul Scherrer Institut

🦵 Femoral neck fractures are common in old age – and this is likely also due to the nanostructure of the bone. PSI researchers Marianne Liebi and Torne Tänzer have demonstrated, using a novel X-ray technique at the Swiss Light Source SLS, that bone density is not the only relevant factor. 🦴 Examination of bone samples from 78 different femoral necks showed that the neat parallel alignment of collagen fibres and mineral platelets seen on the underside of the bone is not found on the upper side – where it most often fractures. This likely reduces flexibility and stability. 🔬 Next, the researchers plan to conduct mechanical stress tests to determine whether bone areas with a “messy” nanostructure are indeed more prone to fracture. For future 3-D tomography scans of bones and other materials, they can rely on the completely renovated SLS, which now enables production of significantly more detailed images, and at a much faster rate. This new method could thus considerably improve our understanding of the structure and mechanics of materials. 🎯 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eztqbKVr Original publication: https://lnkd.in/etjsCXef CC: EPFL, University of Bern, MAX IV Laboratory #ResearchAtPSI #Bone #XRay #Orthopedics #SwissLightSource #SLS