Application of accelerator mass spectrometry in aluminum metabolism studies

Abstract The recent recognition that aluminum causes toxicity in uremie patients and may be associated with Alzheimer's disease has stimulated many studies of its biochemical effects. However, such studies were hampered by the lack of a suitable tracer. In a novel experiment, we have applied the new technique of accelerator mass spectrometry to investigate aluminum kinetics in rats, using as a marker the long-lived isotope 26 Al. We present the first aluminum kinetic model for a biological system. The results clearly demonstrate the advantage this technique holds for isotope tracer studies in animals as well as in humans.