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Updated: Aug 21, 2026
Body Composition and Metabolic Caging Analysis in High Fat Fed Mice
Published on: May 24, 2018
The limitation of DEXA analysis for bone mass determination in mice
Glenn R Dickson1, Mirosław Luczak, Krzysztof H Włodarski
1Trauma Research Group, Department of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery, School of Medicine, Queen's University of Belfast, Musgrave Park Hospital, Belfast BT9 7JB, N Ireland, UK.
Abstract:
An increase in femoral and tibio/fibular bone mass following periosteal membrane stimulation by Moloney sarcoma virus inoculation into thigh muscles of mice was measured in situ on formalin fixed excised hind limbs using a Hologic 4500A Fan Beam X-ray bone densitometer adapted for small bone samples. These results were verified by measurements of constant dry bone mass of the same bones liberated from soft limb tissues by NaOH hydrolysis. There was no consistent data correlation found between the DEXA scan and dry bone mass evaluations. It is concluded that the sensitivity of the DEXA measurement is unsuitable when assessing very small bone samples, weighing merely 20-30 mg.
