It depends on the radionuclide, and the concentration of the label.  Also,
the best source for disposal questions would be your institution's
Radiation Safety office, or Environmental Health & Safety.  I work with
cryostat sections of tissue which has been labelled with tritiated (3H)
thymidine, and the tissue is not considered radioactive (even if we find
labelled cellls!!) if the activity is below a specified number of
cpm per gram of tissue.  You would also need access to a scintillation
counter.  Andra Erickson,BS,HT (ASCP) I can be reached at (206) 543-2627
if you have questions. On Wed, 8 Sep 1999 mark.lewis@shandon.com wrote:

> Hello HistoNetters,
> 
> Does anyone out there  have any experience in processing tissues that have been labeled with radioactive isotopes?  If so, did you have to dispose of the processing reagents as radioactive waste?  I would think this would be the way to go, but I'm not experienced in this area and don't know all of the regulations concerning radioactive waste.
> 
> Any help on this subject will be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Mark Lewis
> Technical Specialist
> Shandon
> 1-800-245-6212 ext. 4013
> 
> 
>