Elemental composition of primary lamellar bone differs between parous and nulliparous rhesus macaque females

Paola Cerrito, Bin Hu, Justin Z. Goldstein, Rachel Kalisher, Shara Bailey, Timothy G. Bromage

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Extracting life history information from mineralized hard tissues of extant and extinct species is an ongoing challenge in evolutionary and conservation studies. Primary lamellar bone is a mineralized tissue with multidien periodicity that begins deposition prenatally and continues until adulthood albeit with concurrent resorption, thus maintaining a record spanning several years of an individual’s life. Here, we use field-emission scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis to measure the relative concentrations of calcium, phosphorous, oxygen, magnesium and sodium in the femora of seven rhesus macaque with known medical and life-history information. We find that the concentration of these elements distinguishes parous from nulliparous females; that in females calcium and phosphorus are lower in bone formed during reproductive events; and that significant differences in relative magnesium concentration correlate with breastfeeding in infants.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article numbere0276866
JournalPloS one
Volume17
Issue number11 November
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2022

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General

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