title: Multi-frequency electron paramagnetic resonance study of irradiated human finger phalanxes.
abstract: Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) is often used in dosimetry using biological samples such as teeth and bones. It is generally assumed that the radicals, formed after irradiation, are similar in both tissues as the mineral part of bone and tooth is carbonated hydroxyapatite. However, there is a lack of experimental evidence to support this assumption. The aim of the present study was to contribute to that field by studying powder and block samples of human finger phalanxes that were irradiated and analyzed by multi-frequency EPR. The results obtained from bones are different from the ones obtained in enamel by several respects: the ordering of the apatite crystallites is much smaller in bone, complicating the assignment of the observed CO2- radicals to a specific location, and one type of CO3(3-) radical was only found in enamel. Moreover, a major difference was found in the non-CO2- and non-CO3(3-) signals. The elucidation of the nature of these native signals (in bone and tooth enamel) still represents a big challenge.
authors.affiliation: Ghent University, Department of Solid State Sciences, Krijgslaan 281-S1, B-9000 Gent, Belgium.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zdravkova
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vanhaelewyn
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Callens
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gallez
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Debuyst
mesh_terms: D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D004578:Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy; D005385:Fingers; D006801:Humans; D013696:Temperature