Abstract

X-ray Small and Wide Scattering scanning microscopies have been adopted to inspect morphological and structural properties of human tissues at the atomic and nano scale [1].

Examples will be discussed on specific pathologies, inspecting  how pathology can be marked by changes in the collagen (supra-molecular  and molecular) structure:

• keratoconus, a pathology affecting cornea, which causes progressive thinning of the stroma and consequently abnormal curvature, inducing irregular astigmatism and myopia, corneal fibrosis, and distortion of vision, due to the modification in the organization of the corneal collagen [2]

• diabetes mellitus, a metabolic disorder characterized by high blood sugar levels over a prolonged period due to defects in insulin action or secretion, which causes collagen to have a fixed orientation, stiffen the tissue and is likely to disrupt the normal cell interactions [3]

• osteoarthritis of the hip, also named osteoarthrosis of the hip or coxarthrosis, which is a chronic degenerative disorder of the hip joint, causing growing articular pain that can bring the patient to lifestyle limitations until surgical intervention is needed [4]

>> additional presence of microcalcifications:

• abdominal aortic aneurysm, that occurs in the major artery from the hearth that supplies blood to the abdomen, and popliteal aneurysm, that takes place in the legs, behind the knees, characterized by alteration of collagen structure into vessel’s wall of the aneurysm tissues, heterogeneous grade of inflammation related to infiltrating cells and extracellular matrix changes, in particular disruption of elastic fibers, fibrosis and microcalcifications [5].

• breast cancer where, in a large portion of cases (90% of ductal carcinoma in situ), microcalcifications are the first sign indicative of the presence of the lesion. Breast microcalcifications detected in tumour have specific chemical and crystalline features, different from those observed in benign samples [6].

[1]  Lens Less Scanning X-ray Microscopy with SAXS and WAXS contrast.
C. Giannini, D. Altamura, B. Maria Aresta, T. Sibillano, D. Siliqi, L. De Caro . Book Title : Synthesis and characterization of inorganic micro and nano-materials. Edited by: A. Dibenedetto, M. Aresta, Published  2013 by DE GRUYTER

[2]  Interfibrillar Packing of Bovine Cornea By Table-Top And Synchrotron Scanning SAXS Microscopy.
T. Sibillano, L. De Caro, F. Scattarella, G. Scarcelli, D. Siliqi, D. Altamura, M. Liebi, M. Ladisa, O. Bunk and C. Giannini. J. APPL. CRYST. 49, 1240-1244 (2016)

[3]  Scanning X-ray Microdiffraction of Decellularized Pericardium Tissue at Increasing Glucose Concentration
C. Giannini, A. Terzi, L. Fusaro, T. Sibillano, A. Diaz, M. Ramella, V. Lutz-Bueno, F.  Boccafoschi and O. Bunk
JOURNAL OF BIOPHOTONICS e201900106. (2019)

[4]  Scanning SAXS-WAXS microscopy on osteoarthritis-affected bone - an age-related study.
C. Giannini, D. Siliqi, M. Ladisa, D. Altamura, A. Diaz, A. Beraudi, T. Sibillano, L. De Caro, S. Stea, F. Baruffaldi and O. Bunk. J. APPL. CRYST. 47, 110-117 (2014)

[5]  X-Ray scanning microscopies of microcalcifications in abdominal aortic and popliteal artery aneurysms
C. Giannini, M. Ladisa, V. Lutz-Bueno, A. Terzi, M. Ramella, L.Fusaro, D. Altamura, D. Siliqi, T. Sibillano, A.Diaz, F. Boccafoschi and O. Bunk
IUCrJ 6(2), 267-276 ( 2019) 

[6] Raman Spectroscopy reveals that biochemical composition of breast microcalcifications correlates with histopathological features
R. Vanna, C. Morasso, B. Marcinnò, F. Piccotti, E. Torti, D. Altamura, S. Albasini, M. Agozzino, L. Villani, L. Sorrentino, O. Bunk, F. Leporati, C. Giannini, F. Corsi
CANCER RESEARCH 80, 1762–72 (2020)