Radiation-induced changes of structural and functional properties of human hemoglobin. I. Spectral characterization of irradiated deoxyhemoglobin.

Structural changes of human deoxyhemoglobin (deoxyHb) induced by water and ethanol radicals were investigated in this study using absorption spectroscopy. Spectra of deoxyHb samples irradiated under various conditions (the atmosphere of argon or N2O in the absence or presence of ethanol) indicate their conversion into methemoglobin (metHb), hemichrome- and cholehemichrome-like products. The absorbance at the characteristic maxima of these derivatives and also of the oxidized or reduced samples following irradiation depends on the dose of radiation and the conditions employed.