The effect of sunlight and UV lamps on EPR signal in nails

The effects of illumination of nail clippings by direct sunlight, UV lamps and fluorescent bulbs on native and radiation-induced electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signals in nails are presented. It is shown that a few minutes of exposure of the nail clippings to light including a UV component (sunlight and UV lamps) generates a strong EPR signal similar to the other EPR signals observable in nails: native background (BKG), mechanically induced (MIS) or radiation-induced (RIS). This effect was observed in clippings exposed and unexposed to ionizing radiation prior to the light illuminations. An exposure of the clippings to fluorescent light without a UV component generated, within the examined range of the light fluences (up to 240 kJ/m²), an EPR signal with considerably lower yield than UV light. The light-induced signal (LIS) decayed after 10 min of water treatment of the samples. In contrast, it was still observable 3 months after illumination in samples stored in air at room temperature, and 3 weeks in frozen samples, respectively. It is concluded that the LIS can considerably affect assessment of the dosimetric RIS components in irradiated nails, and of the background signals in unirradiated nails, thus contributing to errors in EPR dosimetry in nails.