Effects of mineralization on the hierarchical organization of collagen—a synchrotron X-ray scattering and polarized second harmonic generation study

Zheng, Keke, Zhong, Jingxiao, Hu, Jingrui, Nebbiolo, Eve, Sanchez-Weatherby, Juan, Tang, Tengteng, Landis, William J., Chen, Junning, Winlove, Peter, Sherlock, Benjamin E. and Bell, James ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8371-9851 2024. Effects of mineralization on the hierarchical organization of collagen—a synchrotron X-ray scattering and polarized second harmonic generation study. Interface Focus 14 (3) , 20230046. 10.1098/rsfs.2023.0046

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Abstract

The process of mineralization fundamentally alters collagenous tissue biomechanics. While the structure and organization of mineral particles have been widely studied, the impact of mineralization on collagen matrix structure, particularly at the molecular scale, requires further investigation. In this study, synchrotron X-ray scattering (XRD) and polarization-resolved second harmonic generation microscopy (pSHG) were used to study normally mineralizing turkey leg tendon in tissue zones representing different stages of mineralization. XRD data demonstrated statistically significant differences in collagen D-period, intermolecular spacing, fibril and molecular dispersion and relative supramolecular twists between non-mineralizing, early mineralizing and late mineralizing zones. pSHG analysis of the same tendon zones showed the degree of collagen fibril organization was significantly greater in early and late mineralizing zones compared to non-mineralizing zones. The combination of XRD and pSHG data provide new insights into hierarchical collagen–mineral interactions, notably concerning possible cleavage of intra- or interfibrillar bonds, occlusion and reorganization of collagen by mineral with time. The complementary application of XRD and fast, label-free and non-destructive pSHG optical measurements presents a pathway for future investigations into the dynamics of molecular scale changes in collagen in the presence of increasing mineral deposition.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	Published
Schools:	Optometry and Vision Sciences
Additional Information:	License information from Publisher: LICENSE 1: URL: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, Type: open-access
Publisher:	The Royal Society
Funders:	EPSRC, MRC
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	10 June 2024
Date of Acceptance:	22 April 2024
Last Modified:	01 Jul 2024 15:06
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/169631

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