[Campbell Biology P.80] A patient is undergoing a diagnostic procedure that uses radioactiv... | Practice Question
A patient is undergoing a diagnostic procedure that uses radioactive tracers to track kidney function. Which of the following statements about radioactive tracers and their properties is most accurate based on the text?
A: Radioactive tracers are chemically distinct from their nonradioactive counterparts and are therefore only used for external imaging, not internal tracking.
B: The decay of a radioactive isotope, like ¹⁴C to ¹⁴N, involves a neutron transforming into a proton, changing the element's identity.
C: Radioactive isotopes are primarily used because their strong electromagnetic fields allow for direct visualization of organs without other imaging tools.
D: All isotopes of an element, including radioactive ones, are stable and do not undergo spontaneous decay.
Explanation
The text explains that ¹⁴C decays by a neutron transforming into a proton, which changes the atomic number and thus the element from carbon to nitrogen. It also states that radioactive tracers are used to track biological processes like kidney function.