Using Synchrotron Wide-Angle X-Ray Scattering to Study Collagen Degradation in Second Metacarpal Bones

Authors

Zeel Sheth, DePaul UniversityFollow
Misha Romanov, DePaul UniversityFollow
Ruby Schwieger, DePaul UniversityFollow

Faculty Advisor

Gabriela Gonzalez, Aviles, PhD

Abstract

The study examines female human second metacarpal (mc2) bones from early medieval cemetery at Greding, Germany, using high-energy Wide-Angle X-ray Scattering (WAXS) at beamline 1-ID of the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory. Rietveld refinement showed that carbonated apatite lattice parameters did not correlate with estimated age-at-death. For six of the mc2, widths of 00.2 and 00.4 diffraction peaks were substantially narrower than those of a modern (non-diagenetically altered) mc2 and of the other four ancient mc2. The peak width results are interpreted as indicating that four of the ten ancient mc2 retain substantial collagen and six of mc2 have lost their collagen and suffered cAp crystallite coarsening. The WAXS peak width results align with independent analytical methods, highlighting its utility as a non-invasive technique for assessing bone diagenesis and collagen preservation in archaeological specimens.

Recommended Citation

Sheth, Zeel; Romanov, Misha; and Schwieger, Ruby (2025) "Using Synchrotron Wide-Angle X-Ray Scattering to Study Collagen Degradation in Second Metacarpal Bones," DePaul Discoveries: Volume 14, Article 7.
Available at: https://via.library.depaul.edu/depaul-disc/vol14/iss1/7