Micro-CT render of rat tibia cortical bone

Micro-CT render of the cortical bone in a rat tibia

This image shows a render of the canal network and some larger osteocyte lacunae in a rat tibia. It was taken using a SkyScan desktop micro-CT. Most of my research has focused on using micro-CT to image cortical bone.

Isaac V Pratt, George Belev, Ning Zhu, Dean Chapman, and David M L Cooper

Physics in Medicine and Biology, 2015

doi:10.1088/0031-9155/60/1/211
Radially orientated vascular canals in hawk humeral cortical bone

Radially orientated vascular canals in the humeral cortical bone of a red-tailed hawk.

The main question I focused on for my PhD was investigating the relationship between vascular canal orientation and flight and growth rate. This study looked at the differences in orientation between humeri and femora in birds and bats.

Isaac V Pratt, James D Johnston, Ernie Walker, and David M L Cooper

Journal of Anatomy, 2018

doi:10.1111/joa.12803
Metacarpal joints in arthritic rats

Metacarpal joints in arthritic rats

One of my earliest projects was imaging rat paws for a project describing a collagen-induced arthritis model in rats. The right image shows a normal non-arthritic paw, and the left shows an induced arthritis condition. Scans were taken using a SkyScan 1172 desktop micro-CT and surface renders were created in Amira.

Tracy D Wilson-Gerwing, Isaac V Pratt, David M L Cooper, Tawni I Silver, and Alan M Rosenberg

Comparative Medicine, 2013

europepmc.org/article/med/24326225
Micro-CT slices of broiler chicken humeri and femora

Micro-CT slices of broiler chicken humeri and femora

Following on the research path looking at vascular canal orientation, I ran a project investigating the effect of growth rate on canal orientation in broiler chickens. This project was a challenge for me to co-ordinate a lot of moving pieces. Working with live animals and advanced synchrotron imaging, I relied on a lot of different people for their expertise to bring everything together.

Isaac V Pratt and David M L Cooper

Journal of Anatomy, 2018

doi:10.1111/joa.12847
Bronze age Siberian mandible with embedded projectile point

Bronze age Siberian mandible with embedded projectile point

Micro-CT is a great technique for its ability to reveal the inner details of structures. This project investigated a bronze age Siberian mandible that had an embedded projectile point. We used several different CT modalities to investigate the effects of the arrow head on the bone. Using synchrotron micro-CT, we were able to reveal the details of the microstructure and determine that no remodeling or bony repair had taken place after the injury. This meant that this injury occurred at or around the time of death of the individual.

Angela R Lieverse, Isaac V Pratt, Rick J Schulting, David M L Cooper, Vladimir I Bazaliiskii, and Andrzej W Weber

International Journal of Paleopathology, 2014

doi:10.1016/j.ijpp.2014.04.004
Eocene insect trapped in amber

Eocene insect trapped in amber

Using micro-CT we can image ancient creatures trapped in amber and reveal their three dimensional structure. In this image both the external and internal structure are revealed. This work was done in collaboration with researchers at the Royal Saskatchewan Museum.

SEM image of human femoral cortical bone

Scanning Electron Microscopy image of human femoral cortical bone

Scanning electron microscopy is another technique that can be used to image bone at extremely high resolution. This image was taken for a project looking at the branching of cortical canals.

Histological image of Hadrosaur tibia cortical bone

Histological image of cortical bone in a Hadrosaur tibia

While I believe micro-CT represents the future of bone microstructure imaging, traditional techniques like histological imaging still offer very high resolution details, although it comes at the cost of only imaging in two dimensions.