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Figure 3. Light micrographs of titanium-alloy discs 2 weeks after implantation. (A) Low-magnification light micrograph of an implanted titanium-alloy disc (Ti) bearing a layer of calcium phosphate (C) into which BMP-2 has been incorporated. At this two-week juncture, the disc is surrounded by a growing mass of woven bone (B). (B) High-magnification view of the specimen illustrated in Fig. 3A. The coating (C) is being degraded by osteoclasts (arrows). This degradative activity occurs concomitantly with the deposition of woven bone (B). A = artefactual space between the coating (C) and the titanium-alloy disc (Ti), generated by shrinkage during tissue processing. (C) Low-magnification light micrograph of a naked (uncoated) titanium-alloy disc (Ti) bearing no BMP-2, 2 wks after implantation. The disc is surrounded by a connective tissue capsule (S) from which it has become artefactually separated (arrows) during tissue processing. No bone formation has occurred.
