title: Estrogen depletion results in nanoscale morphology changes in dermal collagen.
abstract: Tissue cryo-sectioning combined with atomic force microscopy imaging reveals that the nanoscale morphology of dermal collagen fibrils, quantified using the metric of D-periodic spacing, changes under the condition of estrogen depletion. Specifically, a new subpopulation of fibrils with D-spacings in the region between 56 and 59 nm is present 2 years following ovariectomy in ovine dermal samples. In addition, the overall width of the distribution, both values above and below the mean, was found to be increased. The change in width due to an increase in lower values of D-spacings was previously reported for ovine bone; however, this report demonstrates that the effect is also present in non-mineralized collagen fibrils. A nonparametric Kolmogorov-Smirnov test of the cumulative density function indicates a statistical difference in the sham and OVX D-spacing distributions (P<0.01).
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Kaitlin G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Liroff
authors.forename: A Simon
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.forename: Clifford M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Les
authors.forename: Bradford G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Orr
authors.forename: Mark M Banaszak
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Holl
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003094:Collagen / Q000032:analysis / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D020405:Dermis / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D004967:Estrogens / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D010052:Ovariectomy; D012756:Sheep
chemical_list: D004967:Estrogens; D003094:Collagen