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A Simple Method to Determine the Fractions of Labile and Mineral-Bound Microelements in Bone Tissue by Atomic Absorption Spectrometry

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Abstract

In this work a simple and inexpensive method to assess the concentration ratio of the labile and mineral-bound microelements of the bone tissue was developed. The approach is based on the separation of the components of bone tissue by their selective solubility with the subsequent determination of microelements with atomic absorption spectrometry. The total concentrations of Mg, Zn, Fe, Sr, Al, Cu, and Mn and the concentrations of these elements in aqueous solutions with pH 6.5, 10, and 12 after their ultrasonically activated interaction with the powder of dried bone were determined. Two quite different bone samples were analyzed: a cortical fragment of the femur of a mature healthy cow and the spongy part of a human femoral head affected by osteoporosis. Some common and individual features of the both type of bones in regard to the total concentrations and fractional distribution of microelements are discussed. The obtained concentrations of the “soluble” fractions of microelements were critically analyzed taking into account the possible reactions leading to new insoluble phases’ formation in alkaline solutions. Based on the data obtained, the ability of elements to form labile fractions in the bone tissue could be arranged in the following descending series: Mg ≥ Zn > Al > Fe > Mn > Cu > Sr.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Dr. R.A. Moskalenko and E.V. Husak from the Medical Institute of Sumy State University (Ukraine) for supplying the human hip joint affected by osteoporosis, to M. Zhovner (Institute of Applied Physics, NAS Ukraine) for the pretreatment and delivery of the cortical fragment of the mature healthy cow femur from Lanzhou (China), and to A.V. Kochenko (Institute of Applied Physics, NAS Ukraine) for XRD analysis.

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  1. Institute of Applied Physics, NAS of Ukraine, Sumy, Ukraine

    Sergei Danilchenko, Yuri Rogulsky, Aleksandr Kulik, Aleksei Kalinkevich, Yana Trofimenko, Oksana Kalinkevich & Vadim Chivanov

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  1. Sergei Danilchenko
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  2. Yuri Rogulsky
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  3. Aleksandr Kulik
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  4. Aleksei Kalinkevich
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Correspondence to Sergei Danilchenko or Aleksei Kalinkevich.

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Danilchenko, S., Rogulsky, Y., Kulik, A. et al. A Simple Method to Determine the Fractions of Labile and Mineral-Bound Microelements in Bone Tissue by Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. Biol Trace Elem Res 199, 935–943 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-020-02234-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-020-02234-4

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