Simple modification of a liquid scintillation counter to decrease cost of and time for radioimmunoassay

A simple, inexpensive modification in the elevator mechanism of a liquid scintillation counter allows for radioimmunoassay tubes (12 X 75 mm) containing the antibody-bound radioligand to be counted directly, thereby obviating the need for counting vials and considerably decreasing the amount of fluor used. Furthermore, because assay and counting are all done in the same tube, the modification shortens assay time and increases precision by avoiding what is often the most time consuming and inaccurate step, the transfer of antibody-bound radioligand to a counting vial. We find that use of this modification results in about a 75% decrease in the overall cost for materials and a substantial decrease in assay time.