AUTORADIOGRAPHY

Autoradiography is a powerful detection technique that uses radioactive isotopes to visualize the location, distribution, and quantity of biomolecules within a sample. In this method, biological specimens such as tissues, electrophoresis gels, chromatograms, or cell cultures containing radioactively labeled compounds are placed in close contact with a photographic film or detector. The emitted radiation (usually β-particles) exposes the film, producing dark regions corresponding to the presence of the radioactive material. Autoradiography is widely used in molecular biology, biochemistry, and cell biology for studying DNA replication, gene expression, protein synthesis, metabolic pathways, receptor–ligand interactions, and tissue localization of drugs. It offers extremely high sensitivity, making it possible to detect even very small amounts of radiolabeled molecules.