Relationships of static and kinetic histomorphometric features of bone.
Morphologic features of non-decalcified histologic sections of bone assessed by conventional staining techniques were quantitatively compared with kinetic parameters of the same sections as evaluated by time-spaced, fluorescent tetracycline markers. Double tetracycline labels appeared in apposition to more than 90% of osteoid seams lined by histologically characteristic osteoblasts in a biopsy exhibiting accelerated skeletal metabolism. In contrast, less than half of such surfaces exhibited a double tetracycline label in slowly remodeling bone. Furthermore, in actively metabolizing bone, double labels were found juxtaposed to approximately one-third of osteoid surfaces not lined by typical osteoblasts, and to more than 9% of surfaces exhibiting no osteoid seam at all. Single tetracycline labels were also present in association with non-osteoid lined surfaces in both biopsies. These data underscore the necessity of time-spaced tetracycline markers in ascribing kinetic features to histologic parameters of bone.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001847:Bone Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006652:Histological Techniques; D006801:Humans; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D010006:Osteoblasts / Q000378:metabolism; D013752:Tetracycline / Q000378:metabolism
D013752:Tetracycline