Tritiated thymidine experiments in the cat: a description of techniques and experiments to define the time-course of radioactive thymidine availability.

Tritiated thymidine [(3H]thymidine) autoradiographic techniques have been used to define birthdates for cells in a variety of animals. In an effort to include [3H]thymidine experiments in our ongoing studies of visual system development, we have used an intrauterine injection procedure that affords [3H]thymidine labeling of dividing nerve cells in the cat. This report contains a detailed description of the injection procedures used, as well as the results of experiments undertaken to define the period of time during which the exogenous [3H]thymidine introduced by such injections remains available for uptake.