[The role of structural factors in radiolytic damage of human hemoglobin]

A significant difference was discovered in low temperature (77 K) gamma-radiolytic behavior of 20% aqueous solutions of human oxyhemoglobin and partly denaturated methemoglobin. In the latter case twice as high yield of the sum of free radicals and OH radicals was observed, as well as presence in the ESR spectrum of a narrow singlet line at g 2.00 (absent for irradiated solutions of oxyhemoglobin) ascribed to the stabilized electron.