Identification of irradiated mangoes by means of ESR spectroscopy

Samples of mango varieties Tommy Atkins, Haiden and Ataulfo were irradiated with 60Co gamma radiation at doses in the range 0.15-1.0 kGy, and stored at room temperature for lapses of time up to 72 h. They were then studied by ESR spectrometry. Results show that the ESR signal of the irradiated samples is higher than that of the unirradiated samples, and this is found even at the minimum radiation dose of 0.15 kGy. The ESR signal remained stable during the storage time. The ESR signals obtained for hydroheated mangoes show insignificant differences with respect to the control samples.