Iodine-125 is preferred for this purpose, due to better radiation penetration and shorter half-life (13 hours). I-125 is useful for Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) testing in the diagnosis or monitoring of patients with kidney disease. I-125 is used in Iodine-125 is used "therapeutically" in brachytherapy treatments of tumors. For radiotherapy ablation of tissues that absorb iodine (such as the thyroid), or that absorb an iodine-containing radiopharmaceutical, the beta-emitter iodine-131 is the preferred isotope. I is created by the electron capture decay of Xe, which is a synthetic isotope of xenon, itself created by neutron capture of the slightly radioactive Xe, which
Iodine in biology Iodine in biology Iodine is an essential trace element in biological systems. It has the distinction of being the heaviest element commonly needed by living organisms as well as the second-heaviest known to be used by any form of life (only tungsten, a component of a few bacterial enzymes, has a higher atomic number and atomic weight). It is a component of biochemical pathways in organisms from all biological kingdoms, suggesting its fundamental significance throughout the evolutionary history of life. Iodine is critical to the proper functioning of the vertebrate endocrine system, and plays smaller roles in numerous other organs,