A novel analytical high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-based method of quantification of the yields of C4′-oxidized abasic sites, 1, in oxidatively damaged DNA has been elaborated. This new approach is based on efficient conversion of 1 into N-substituted 5-methylene-Δ³-pyrrolin-2-ones, 2, upon treatment of damaged DNA with primary amines in neutral or slightly acidic solutions with subsequent quantification of 2 by HPLC. The absolute and relative radiation-chemical yields of 1 in irradiated DNA solutions were re-evaluated using this method. The yields were compared with those of other 2-deoxyribose degradation products including 5-methylene-2(5H)-furanone, malondialdehyde, and furfural resulting from the C1′, C4′ and C5′-oxidations, respectively. The yield of free base release (FBR) determined in the same systems was employed as an internal measure of the total oxidative damage to the 2-deoxyribose moiety. Application of this technique identifies 1 as the most abundant sugar lesion in double-stranded (ds) DNA irradiated under air in solution (36% FBR). In single-stranded (ss) DNA this product is second by abundance (33% FBR) after 2-deoxyribonolactones (C1′-oxidation; 43% FBR). The production of nucleoside-5′-aldehydes (C5′-oxidation; 14% and 5% FBR in dsDNA and ssDNA, respectively) is in the third place. Taken together with the parallel reaction channel that converts C4′-radicals into malondialdehyde and 3′-phosphoglycolates, our results identify the C4′-oxidation as a prevalent pathway of oxidative damage to the sugar-phosphate backbone (50% or more of all 2-deoxyribose damages) in indirectly damaged DNA.