 Irreducible elements of a principal ideal domain are prime

Let $\pi$ be an irreducible element of a principal ideal domain $R$, and suppose $\pi \nmid a$. The ideal $(\pi ,a)=(d)$ has generator $d$ dividing $\pi$. Irreducibility makes $d$ a unit or an associate of $\pi$; the latter would imply $\pi \mid a$. Hence $(\pi ,a)=R$, giving $u\pi +va=1$ for some $u,v\in R$. If $\pi \mid ab$, multiply this identity by $b$: both $u\pi b$ and $vab$ are divisible by $\pi$, so $\pi \mid b$. This is precisely the prime element property.