Feb 8, 2011 - Bone Construction

Reminder - The Histology Comprehensive Test is this Friday 2/11.
                  It will be run as a practical exam.
               - Check out this website for reviewing for the test, it is the best one yet
                  http://nhscience.lonestar.edu/biol/tissue.html

Anatomy of a Bone

http://www.baileybio.com/plogger/images/biology/powerpoint_-_integumentary__skeletal__and_muscular_systems/bone_tissue.jpg

     The image above gives a good overview of the gross anatomy and the micro-anatomy of a long bone.  You should become familiar with the definitions of these terms as well as be able to identify them on images in a  quiz setting.

     Bone tissue is "living"  in that it is constantly changing and is very responsive.  The bone material will change its shape to meet the demands of forces put on it.  

     The image below shows the result of Chinese foot binding.  The bones in the foot change shape in response to the external pressures exerted on them.

Foot Binding (纏足)

In the 10^th   century, in China, legend says a prince began the practice of foot binding because he loved the small "Lily Feet" of his concubine. The tiny foot became the mark of a wealthy and well-born woman.

Footbinding was a custom practised on young females for approximately one thousand years in China, and ended in the early 20th century.  In Chinese foot binding, young girls’ feet, usually at age 6 but often earlier, were wrapped in tight bandages so that they could not grow and develop normally; they would, instead, break and become highly deformed, not growing past 4-6 inches (10-15 cm).  Bound feet had to be washed and cared for daily.  If toe nails grew into the instep, infection could set in.  If the bindings were too tight, gangrene and blood poisoning could occur.  The bound foot was painful and tender forever.  It often had an unpleasant smell.  Today, the result of foot binding is a prominent cause of disability among some elderly Chinese women.

Plagiocephaly

http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/heraldextra.com/content/tncms/assets/editorial/e/cd/da4/ecdda4ec-e86c-514f-8b87-b838075143b7.image.jpg

What is Plagiocephaly? - Plagiocephaly occurs when a baby's head develops a flat spot or becomes asymmetrical due to some kind of external pressure. Many babies are born with an abnormally shaped head as a result of the pressure exerted on them during birth, but most babies' heads will correct themselves within about six weeks.  Plagiocephaly can also occur after childbirth and is not uncommon in neglected infants who are left to lie unattended for long periods.  The weight of the baby's head presses down on the back of the skull and the bones respond by forming to that shape.  http://www.babycenter.com/0_plagiocephaly-flat-head-syndrome_1187981.bc

 

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQIdBEyEIx6kda4AO790xIWbQVVgScdjSkXevDDHluYilYzHhwT

Fun fact:   The crystal skulls (upon which the Indiana Jones movie are based) are a number of human skull hardstone carvings made of clear or milky quartz rock, known in art history as "rock crystal", claimed to be pre-Columbian Mesoamerican artifacts by their alleged finders. However, none of the specimens made available for scientific study have been authenticated as pre-Columbian in origin. The results of these studies demonstrated that those examined were manufactured in the mid-19th century or later, almost certainly in Europe.