Material Properties of the Developing Bone-Cartilage Interface in the Human Fetal Spine

Treatment of disc degeneration and subsequent device interfacing in the spine are limited by a poor understanding of the mechanics of the bone-cartilage interface between vertebral bodies (VB) and the intervertebral disc (IVD). Additionally, tissue engineering strategies are under investigation despite a lack of information on the structure of the developing interface and mechanical properties during endochondral ossification. Fetal tissue provides an initial reference to study the developing mineralization patterns and mechanical property gradient at the transition between mineralized and soft tissues. Through nanoindentation, quantitative back scattered electron microscopy (qBSE) (Ferguson 2003) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), it is possible to study mineralized tissue formation from both mechanical and compositional perspectives at scales relevant to the mechanics of the interface.