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Skeletal Remains Submerged in Mediterranean Sea for Eight Years:Histological Observations

Giuseppe Vacchiano and Gentian Vyshka

The authors describe the histological changes observed in a number of bone fragments which had remained submerged at a depth of 3850 metres in the Mediterranean Sea for 7 years and 10 months. The bone fragments which presented a complete skeletization were without any cellular residue while collagen fibres were still appreciable above all in the outermost circumferential lamellas of each osteonic system. No presence of extraneous biological material such as fungi, bacteria or other micro-organisms which often colonise buried bones were found on any of the bone structures examined. The bone remains moreover exhibited a notably reduced density due to the notable loss of inorganic constituents.