Micro-CT evaluation of murine fetal skeletal development yields greater morphometric precision over traditional clear-staining methods.

Traditional techniques for quantification of murine fetal skeletal development (gross measurements, clear-staining) are severely limited by specimen processing, soft tissue presence, diffuse staining, and unclear landmarks between which to make measurements. Nondestructive microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) imaging is a versatile, well-documented tool traditionally used to generate high-resolution 3-D images and quantify microarchitectural parameters of trabecular bone. Although previously described as a tool for phenotyping fetal murine specimens, micro-CT has not previously been used to directly measure individual fetal skeletal structures. Imaging murine fetal skeletons using micro-CT enables the researcher to nondestructively quantify fetal skeletal development parameters including limb length, total bone volume, and average bone mineral density, as well as identify skeletal malformations. Micro-CT measurement of fetal limb lengths correlates well with traditional clear-staining methods (83.98% agreement), decreases variability in measurements (average standard errors: 6.28% for micro-CT and 10.82% for clear-staining), decreases data acquisition time by eliminating the need for tissue processing, and preserves the intact fixed fetus for further analysis. Use of the rigorous micro-CT technique to generate 3-D images for digital measurement enables isolation of skeletal structures based on degree of mineralization (local radiodensity), eliminating the complications of blurred stain boundaries and soft tissue inclusion that accompany clear-staining and gross measurement techniques. Microcomputed tomography provides a facile, accurate, and nondestructive method for determining the developmental state of the fetal skeleton using not only limb lengths and identification of malformations, but total skeletal bone volume and average skeletal mineral density as well.