Soluble CD4 (sT4) has been metabolically labeled with [3H]leucine in Chinese hamster ovary cells and purified by S Sepharose chromatography. Over 250 microCi of high specific radioactivity [3H]sT4 (42 Ci/mmol) was prepared. The radiolabeled molecule was chemically and biologically representative of the unlabeled molecule and thus appropriate for in vivo metabolic investigations. To explore the biotransformation and disposition of a recombinant protein, this uniformly labeled [3H]sT4 was administered intravenously and subcutaneously to male Sprague-Dawley rats. Following a single dose of 0.3 mg/kg, blood samples were collected for 9 days and analyzed for total radioactivity, total plasma radioactivity, trichloroacetic acid-precipitable plasma radioactivity, sT4-related plasma radioactivity (by extraction with a Sepharose-bound polyclonal anti-sT4 antibody), and plasma sT4 concentration (by an N and C terminal-specific Leu3A/OKT4 ELISA). Excreta were analyzed for total radioactivity. The pharmacokinetic profiles of intact sT4 were as expected from the results of previous studies. sT4 was cleared rapidly from plasma with an elimination t1/2 of 7 min (intravenous), and low sT4 levels were observed following subcutaneous administration. Comparison of the kinetic profiles of total radiolabel, trichloroacetic acid-precipitable radiolabel, sT4-related radiolabel, and the isolation of plasma proteins containing tritium have led to the following conclusions. One of the major metabolic pathways for [3H]sT4 was the degradation of the polypeptide to its constituent amino acids, which were subsequently incorporated into endogenous proteins. Incorporation of tritium into blood cell proteins resulted in a prolonged radiolabel blood profile (t1/2 greater than 250 hr). Following subcutaneous administration, [3H] sT4 was significantly degraded before reaching the vascular circulation.