Evening star., 1949-03-04

ISOIOpe LABORATORY
Al Medical Center
The Army opened its first atomic
isotope laboratory here today
four-room, $4,000 array of test
tubes, Grieger counters and
sealed-in white mice designed for
medical research with radioac-
tive chemicals.
Opened officially at the Army
Medical Center by Maj. Gen,
Raymond w. Bliss, Army Surgeon
General. the new laboratory is
the first full-scale venture by
Army doctors into this new medi-
cal field.
In addition to research. the lab
oratory also will be used for actual
clinical investigation and treat
ment of Army personnel for
several types of diseases, including
cancer.
1t will be supplied with its raw
material-radioactive atomic iso-
topes-by the Oak Ridge atomic
energy plant in Tennessee. Rec
concentrations of the Atonsc
Energy Commission guided con-
struction of the laboratory.
Young Doctors in Charge.
In charge of the project are
three young Army doctors fresh
from training in their new atomic
age speciality.
Capt. Edgar Letter, 80. labora-
tory supervisor. and Capt. John r.
Hogness. q. both spent more than
a year at the Los Alamos. N. Mex.
atomic research center before their
new assignment. While there
they designed and built a new
type. glass-inclosed cage in which
| to study isotope-treated mice
without danger from radioactivity
Two of these cages are already In
use in the new laboratory.
Their colleague is First 1t
Robert Soberman. rs, trained in q
university laboratory already ac-
tive in the new research. All three
are under the supervision of an
isotope committee at the Medical
Center headed by Col. Rufus Holt,
commandant of the center's Re-
search and Graduate School.
Core of the new laboratory are
four stationary Geiger counters
somewhat resembling radio sets in
outward appearance. Each has a
dial which registers the amount of
radioactivity present when radio
active material is submitted for
test. Unit of measurement is the
millicurie-named in honor of
Nine. Curie. the French physicist
and atomic pioneer-which rep
resents the disintegration of 80
100000 atoms per second. The
disintegration is what is described
as radioactivity.
Isotope Diluted in "Well."
In another room Of the labora-
tory, as far as possible from the
Geiger counters because of their
extreme sensitivity, are heavy lead
containers, about the size of auto
mobile batteries, in which ship
ments arrive from Oak Ridge. A
typical shipment in one of these
containers is about 20 millicuries
of radioactive chemical dissolved
in 3 or 4 cubic centimeters of
water. according to Capt. Letter.
The dissolved isotope is meas
ured out and diluted-its original
strength is too great for labora-
tory purposes-in well" sur
rounded by lead bricks, and with
techniques developed to guard
against radioactivity. Then the
strength of the chemical Is meas
ured in a Geiger counter.
Radioactive isotopes of iodine
PHOSPHORUS, sodium and carbon
are to be used in initial projects.
The first three will be employed
in studying and treating such dis
eases as those of the thyroid
gland. including cancer, and of
the blood and circulatory system.
Carbon isotopes will be admins
tered to animals for studies of
drugs and their effect on metabol-
ism.
For protection of the laboratory
workers, the new installation is
equipped with several portable
Geiger counters that can detect
traces of radioactive materials on
clothing and around the labora-
tory.