Micro-PIXE and FT-IR microscopic studies of mineralized nodules formed in rat bone marrow stromal cell cultures

A proton microprobe in combination with Proton Induced X-ray Emission (micro-PIXE) and Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) microscopy are used for examination of the elemental composition and structure of inorganic deposits formed in cell cultures of rat bone marrow. The results show that micro-PIXE is well suited for prior recognition of the localization and for the determination of the elemental composition of the deposits while FT-IR microscopy may be used to determine the structure of deposits in situ with a spatial resolution of about 20 mu m. It is demonstrated that nodules in the cell culture are composed of different Ca compounds. In contrast to physiological mineralization, Ca-P compounds do not dominate the mineral phase. Discrepancies are observed between histomorphometric and micro-PIXE data. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.