Figure 1. Corresponding sagittal and coronal sections acquired using conventional micro-CT (C-μCT) and propagation phase contrast synchrotron micro-tomography (PPCST).

(A) The PPCST reconstructed images show a markedly superior soft tissue contrast of the intervertebral disc (purple) as well as the delineation of the endplate (green) compared to the C-μCT images. The canals in the endplate could be detected in both C-μCT and PPCST images. (B) A representative intensity profile across the dashed line drawing in the images in (A). Scale bar = 1 mm. VB = vertebral body, EP = endplate, GP = growth plate, IVD = intervertebral disc.