From the Century of Endocrinology: 1959 – 1960: Radioimmunoassay Developed

  • Aug 2016
Solomon Berson and Rosalyn Yalow
Solomon Berson and Rosalyn Yalow

Rosalyn Yalow (Society President, 1978-1979) and Solomon Berson (Society member) developed a technique that uses radioactive materials to investigate the human body for small amounts of substances.

In 1959, Yalow and Berson perfected their measurement technique and named it radioimmunoassay (RIA). RIA is extremely sensitive. It can measure one trillionth of a gram of material per milliliter of blood. Due to the small sample required for measurement, RIA quickly became a standard laboratory tool. Yalow later won the 1977 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for her work.

For more about the Century of Endocrinology, go to: www.ESCentennial.org/timeline.

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