EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Researchers at Michigan State University are developing a way to tell if chestnuts are rotten without opening them.

To help assure that chestnuts reach market in good condition, the research team is working to create a noninvasive method of detecting internal decay in the fruit.

They're involved in assessing the various imaging techniques currently available.

So far, it seems that CT scans work better than X-rays, MRIs and other techniques.

Known as CT, computerized tomography combines a series of X-rays taken from different angles and computer processing to create cross-sectional images.

The U.S. produces only about 1 percent of the world's chestnuts, and Michigan is the national leader.

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Project details: http://bit.ly/Uk9lzk