EPR study on sugar radicals utilized for detection of radiation treatment of food

Radicals produced by ionizing radiation in sugars, the components of dried and raw fruits give rise to stable multicomponent electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signals unidentified so far. The subject of the present EPR study is to identify the radicals stabilized in gamma-irradiated crystalline sugars, D(+)mannose and L(-)sorbose extracted from cranberries (Vaccininum oxycoccos) and rowan berries (Sorbus aucuparia), respectively. EPR measurements and density functional theory (DFT) simulations were employed for that purpose.