From a rock to a hard place: Journeys of a radiochemist through inner and outer space

A brief chronicle is presented of one radiochemist's meanders through the fields of meteoritics, lunar studies, and geochemistry to current studies of possible relationships of trace element imbalances to diseases affecting the brain and spinal cord. This range of studies is used to underscore the broad applications of radiochemistry and the need to maintain educational programs and research in radiochemistry. Our recent studies of tissues from subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), have shown that imbalances exist for concentrations of many trace elements, compared to corresponding concentrations in control subjects. Among the elements most frequently found imbalanced are aluminum, bromine, cadmium, copper, iron, mercury, rubidium, and zinc. Several of these elements may be involved in processes leading to free-radical-induced oxidative damage in Alzheimer's disease. Our multi-technique analytical approach to these studies is briefly reviewed.