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Measurement of the 234U/238U activity ratios in the organs and internal tissues of a domestic goat kid (Capra aegagrus hircus)

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Abstract

In this paper, we compare the 234U/238U activity ratios (ARs) in various internal tissues and organs of a goat kid with the ingested 234U/238U AR to assess isotopic fractionation. The results obtained from soft tissues (i.e., the kidneys, liver, lung, and bladder) that undergo indirect assimilation of uranium from the feed through the bloodstream suggest an increase in the 234U/238U AR. In contrast, the intestine, bones and feces had the same AR values as the feed. Finally, we broadly assess uranium transfer from the feed to the animal based on the concentration ratio and the feed transfer coefficient.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the “I Piani” farm for providing the samples. We would also like to thank two anonymous referees for their useful comments, which improved the quality of this paper. We also thank Prof. S. Dulla (Politecnico di Torino) for discussions about some of our results.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. U-Series Srl, Via Ferrarese 131, 40128, Bologna, BO, Italy

    Francesco De Santis & Massimo Esposito

  2. Dipartimento Energia, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129, Torino, TO, Italy

    Francesco De Santis, Mario De Salve & Massimo Zucchetti

  3. Azienda Ospedaliera S. Giuseppe Moscati, Contrada Amoretta, 83100, Avellino, AV, Italy

    Armando Masucci

Authors
  1. Francesco De Santis
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  2. Mario De Salve
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  3. Armando Masucci
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  4. Massimo Zucchetti
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  5. Massimo Esposito
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Correspondence to Massimo Esposito.

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De Santis, F., De Salve, M., Masucci, A. et al. Measurement of the 234U/238U activity ratios in the organs and internal tissues of a domestic goat kid (Capra aegagrus hircus). J Radioanal Nucl Chem 306, 341–347 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-015-4116-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-015-4116-3

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