Rapid determination of lead in biological tissues by microsampling-cup atomic absorption spectrometry

Lead can be determined in kidney, liver, and lung tissues by a rapid technique which does not require ashing or acid digestion of the sample. The tissue is homogenized with water, an aliquot of the homogenate is pipetted into a microsampling cup, and lead is determined directly by atomic absorption spectrometry. Calibration is by lead standards in a whole blood matrix. Results correlate well with those obtained by a wet-ashing procedure. The sensitivity (0.01 μg Pb g^-1 wet tissue) permits the analysis of typical tissues with good precision. The procedure is rapid, and its simplicity minimizes the risk of contamination by extraneous lead during sample preparation.