The Study of the Caudal Vertebrae of Thick-Toed Geckos after a Prolonged Space Flight by X-ray Phase-Contrast Micro-CT
Inna Bukreeva,
Victoria I. Gulimova,
Yuri S. Krivonosov,
Alexey V. Buzmakov,
Olga Junemann,
Alessia Cedola,
Michela Fratini,
Laura Maugeri,
Ginevra Begani Provinciali,
Francesca Palermo,
Alessia Sanna,
Nicola Pieroni,
Victor E. Asadchikov,
Sergey V. Saveliev
Affiliations
Inna Bukreeva
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Victoria I. Gulimova
Avtsyn Research Institute of Human Morphology of Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, “Petrovsky National Research Centre of Surgery”, Tsyurupy Str. 3, 117418 Moscow, Russia
Yuri S. Krivonosov
Federal Scientific Research Centre “Crystallography and Photonics”, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskiy Prospekt 59, 119333 Moscow, Russia
Alexey V. Buzmakov
Federal Scientific Research Centre “Crystallography and Photonics”, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskiy Prospekt 59, 119333 Moscow, Russia
Olga Junemann
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Alessia Cedola
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Michela Fratini
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Laura Maugeri
IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Via Ardeatina 306/354, 00142 Roma, Italy
Ginevra Begani Provinciali
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Francesca Palermo
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Alessia Sanna
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Nicola Pieroni
Institute of Nanotechnology, CNR, Rome Unit, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
Victor E. Asadchikov
Federal Scientific Research Centre “Crystallography and Photonics”, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskiy Prospekt 59, 119333 Moscow, Russia
Sergey V. Saveliev
Avtsyn Research Institute of Human Morphology of Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, “Petrovsky National Research Centre of Surgery”, Tsyurupy Str. 3, 117418 Moscow, Russia
The proximal caudal vertebrae and notochord in thick-toed geckos (TG) (Chondrodactylus turneri, Gray, 1864) were investigated after a 30-day space flight onboard the biosatellite Bion-M1. This region has not been explored in previous studies. Our research focused on finding sites most affected by demineralization caused by microgravity (G0). We used X-ray phase-contrast tomography to study TG samples without invasive prior preparation to clarify our previous findings on the resistance of TG’s bones to demineralization in G0. The results of the present study confirmed that geckos are capable of preserving bone mass after flight, as neither cortical nor trabecular bone volume fraction showed statistically significant changes after flight. On the other hand, we observed a clear decrease in the mineralization of the notochordal septum and a substantial rise in intercentrum volume following the flight. To monitor TG’s mineral metabolism in G0, we propose to measure the volume of mineralized tissue in the notochordal septum. This technique holds promise as a sensitive approach to track the demineralization process in G0, given that the volume of calcification within the septum is limited, making it easy to detect even slight changes in mineral content.
