We can offer three alternatives to Uranyl Acetate for territories where shipping of radioactive substances is prohibitive.
These alternatives to Uranyl Acetate are non radioactive EM grade universal stains.

UA-Zero is a patented solution developed as a direct substitute for Uranyl Acetate.
UA-Zero does not contain any radioactive material and is non-toxic.

It can be used as a direct replacement for Uranyl Acetate with no changes to standard user protocols and delivers high contrast imaging.

AGR1260D is a mixture of lanthanum, samarium and gadolinium salts.

Technical Note

EM Stain 336 is a mixture of lanthanum salts, samarium triacetate (Sm(CH₃COO)₃) and gadolinium triacetate Gd(CHVCOO)₃).
Both are reasonably soluble in water showing a neutral pH at room temperature.

Whilst initial staining of sections may not quite equal that of uranyl salts, post staining with osmium tetroxide before embedding increases the stain density dramatically.

Standard protocols for specimen fixation can be followed but best results will be attained if post fixation using 1% osmium tetroxide (OsO₄) is undertaken before embedding and staining.

Method for Staining Sections

Dilute the original EM Stain 336 4 x with distilled water.

Place drops of the diluted stain on a dental wax sheet and invert the grids containing the sections onto the drops. Staining time is normally around 30 minutes at room temperature but can be shortened or extended according to section requirements.

Grids should be washed preferably by running distilled water down between the tines of the handling tweezers otherwise grids should be dipped at least three times in fresh distilled water.

MSDS

Download Material Safety Data Sheet – AGR1000 UA-Zero EM Stain

Download Material Safety Data Sheet – AGR1260C Platinum Blue Uranyl Acetate Alternative

Download Material Safety Data Sheet – AGR1260D EM Stain 336 Uranyl Acetate Alternative