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Tuning Oxide Properties by Oxygen Vacancy Control During Growth and Annealing
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Strontium substitution for calcium in lithogenesis.

Sarah D Blaschko1, Thomas Chi, Joe Miller

  • 1Department of Urology, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.

The Journal of Urology
|December 25, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Strontium was found in most human kidney stones, substituting for calcium and forming strontium apatite. This discovery, missed by standard analysis, offers new insights into kidney stone formation (lithogenesis).

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Area of Science:

  • Biomineralization
  • Geochemistry
  • Urology

Background:

  • Strontium (Sr) mimics calcium (Ca) in biological processes.
  • While Sr incorporation in bone is known, its presence in urinary calculi is understudied.
  • Urinary calculi, or kidney stones, affect a significant portion of the population.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the presence and characteristics of strontium in human kidney stones.
  • To compare strontium detection using advanced synchrotron techniques versus standard laboratory analysis.
  • To explore the implications of strontium presence in kidney stone formation.

Main Methods:

  • Human kidney stone samples were collected from patients undergoing nephrolithotomy/ureteroscopy.
  • Samples underwent standard analysis and advanced synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS).
  • XRF elemental mapping and XAS determined strontium's distribution and speciation within the stones.

Main Results:

  • Standard analysis identified calcium oxalate, calcium phosphate, uric acid, and cystine stones.
  • XRF detected strontium in all stone types except pure cystine.
  • Elemental mapping showed co-localization of strontium and calcium; XAS revealed strontium predominantly as strontium apatite in calcium phosphate stones.

Conclusions:

  • Advanced XRF imaging confirmed strontium presence in all calcium-based kidney stones, primarily as strontium apatite.
  • Strontium substitution for calcium is detectable in various calcium-based stones, offering insights into early lithogenesis.
  • This finding highlights a limitation of standard stone analysis and suggests strontium's role in kidney stone development.