A diagram of the hierarchical structure of the intervertebral disc (IMAGE)

University of California - San Diego

A diagram of the hierarchical structure of the intervertebral disc

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The hierarchical structure of the intervertebral disc (approximately 45–55 mm diameter in the human lumbar spine and 2.5–5 mm in the rat coccygeal spine) is composed of the outer fiber-reinforced annulus fibrosus and inner gelatinous nucleus pulposus core. The type 1 collagen fibers that reinforce the annulus fibrosus have a typical diameter of approximately μ and are made up of many collagen fibrils with diameters on the order of 100 nm. The fibrils contain collagen alpha-helices, which are each around 1.6 nm in diameter.

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University of California/University of Utah

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