Click on image to view larger version.
Figure 2. Typical topographic images of the ectocranial surface of the 3 facial sutures under study by contact-mode atomic force microscopy. Surface topography of the zygomaticotemporal suture (A), the nasofrontal suture (C), the pre-maxillomaxillary suture (E), and their corresponding sutural mineralization fronts (B,D,F). The ZTS demonstrated a characteristically smooth sutural surface and gradient topographic distribution (A), whereas the NFS (C) and PMS (E) both had robust topographic variations in surface contour. In contrast, the ZTS sutural mineralization front (B) demonstrated notable topography, similar in magnitude to the topography of sutural mineralization fronts of the NFS (D) and PMS (F).
