Investigation at the micrometer scale of pancreatic calcifications in chronic pancreatitis by μFTIR spectroscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy

A set of pancreatic stones and surgical specimens with chronic pancreatitis from various etiologies has been investigated by μFourier Transform Infra-Red spectroscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy in order to gather information regarding their chemical composition and their structural characteristics at the mesoscopic scale. These physicochemical data were compared to the medical data of the patients. Regarding the pancreatic stones, the complete set of data underlines the presence of three calcium carbonate polymorphs as well as a great diversity on their spatial distribution (core versus surface), a wide range of protein content and the presence of other phases in a limited number of samples. These results suggest that very different mechanisms are involved in stone formation. The results have been also obtained on pancreas tissues. Chemical diversity also exists for ectopic calcifications. The presence of CA and its amorphous precursor (ACCP) constitutes a real challenge for clinicians, such chemical compounds being associated with biological parameters far from those related to calcium carbonate.