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In a statement, a spokesperson for the company said the replacement reagent had been approved by the U.S.

The startup says it could save pathology labs significant time and resources, as well as reduce labs’ footprint in toxic reagents.

They are identified by their distinctive granules that stain red when treated with an acidic reagent, eosin, which gave them their name.

"Here we showed that we can spatially separate and recover nearly pure rare earth elements without complex, expensive reagents or time-consuming processes."

It is called Murakami's reagent, which etches away carbon residue and changes the colour of steel in knife making, for example.