Tetracycline cathodoluminescence in bone, dentine and enamel

The emission of light under electron bombardment (cathodoluminescence-CL) in an SEM has been demonstrated from tetracycline and tetracycline labelled areas of bone, dentine and secretory and maturation zone enamel. CL images could be compared with backscattered (BSE) and secondary (SE) electron images in (a) fresh, air-dried or freeze-dried samples taken without fixation at a short term after labelling: (b) polished block faces of fixed, plastic embedded tissue and (c) cut section surfaces cut through fixed and unfixed tissue. These results indicate a considerable future potential for the tetracycline-CL-SEM mode in experimental studies on teeth and histopathological and growth studies of bone.