Microwaves Determine the Orientational Distribution of Collagen Fibers in a Whole Cobra Skin

Polymer Journal volume 39, pages181–186(2007)Cite this article

Abstract

The orientation of collagen fibers was determined in a small region of a cobra skin using Osaki’s microwave method, and compared with the mechanical breaking method. The microwave method provided the orientational distribution of collagen fibers in the whole cobra skin. The collagen fibers were, on average, aligned almost parallel to the direction of the cranial to caudal end in the dorsum of the trunk and caudal regions, while they were aligned randomly in the abdomen. The degree of collagen-fiber orientation decreased gradually from the dorsum to the abdomen, and was relatively small in the cranial region, compared with that in the other dorsum regions. The results obtained using Osaki’s microwave method indicate that the orientational distribution of collagen fibers in cobra skin is closely related to the style of functional motion, such as shrinkage and expansion, of the cobra.

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medicine, Nara Medical University, Kashihara, Nara, 634-8521, Japan

    Katsunori Niitsuma & Sachiko Miyagawa

  2. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Nara Medical University, Kashihara, Nara, 634-8521, Japan

    Shigeyoshi Osaki

Authors
  1. Katsunori Niitsuma
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  2. Sachiko Miyagawa
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  3. Shigeyoshi Osaki
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shigeyoshi Osaki.

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Niitsuma, K., Miyagawa, S. & Osaki, S. Microwaves Determine the Orientational Distribution of Collagen Fibers in a Whole Cobra Skin. Polym J 39, 181–186 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.PJ2006127

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Keywords

  • Cobra Skin
  • Collagen Fiber
  • Orientation
  • Motion
  • Microwaves
  • Anisotropy

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