quality and hygiene standards, and reducing loss during storage and tran-
sportation.
Application of Isotope Tracing Technique in Agricultural Science
Isotope (radioactive or stable) tracing technique, which plays an
important role in the study of biology, has such advantages as high resolving
power and sensitivity. In agriculture, this technique is mainly applied to
the study of soil improvement, rational fertilization, irrigation, the
nutrition and reproduction aspects of plant and animal physiology, plant
protection, veterinary diagnosis, pesticide residue, environmental protection
and biotechnology. For an example, the use of 15N to study the use of
nitrogenous fertilizer on paddy-fields raises the efficiency of fertilizer
and boost production by 14 to 15%. The use of radioactive immunity method
offers a quick diagnosis of an infectious blister illness in pigs and proves
effective in the early detection of pregnancy of livestock.
The isotope
tracing technique enables scientists to conduct a more comprehensive study
of the residue, decomposition and transfer of pesticide, which provides a
scientific basis for the drawing up of safety standards in respect of pesticide.
In recent years the study of isotope tracing technique has been advanced to
an even higher level.