Collagen orientation patterns in human secondary osteons, quantified in the radial direction by confocal microscopy

The composite structure of secondary osteon lamellae, key micro-mechanical components of human bone, has intrigued researchers for the last 300 years. Scanning confocal microscopy here for the first time systematically quantifies collagen orientations by location within the lamellar thickness. Fully calcified lamellar specimens, extinct or bright in cross-section under circularly polarized light, were gently flattened, and then examined along...