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Interactions Between Nucleic Acid Ions and Electrons and Photons

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Nucleic Acids in the Gas Phase

Part of the book series: Physical Chemistry in Action ((PCIA))

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Abstract

This chapter deals with nucleic acid ions and their interactions with electrons and photons in the gas phase based on the many different experiments that have been performed relating to this topic within the last 10 years. The fragmentation caused by electron attachment to anions is discussed, and the role of hydration is touched upon. Photoelectron spectroscopy has established the electron binding energies of mononucleotide anions, dinucleotides and larger strands. These are significantly lower than the thresholds for electron-induced electron detachment from anions. Thresholds were measured from electron scattering experiments and product ion masses from mass spectrometry. The site of electron removal is either the base or the phosphate group, and it is likely different for photodetachment and electron detachment. Work has not been limited to anions only, but cations have also been studied. Neutral reionisation of protonated nucleobases has shed light on the lifetime of the neutral intermediate species, which was found to be significantly different to that of the temporary nucleobase anion formed in collisional electron transfer to nucleotide anions. Dissociative recombination experiments involving oligonucleotide monocations have demonstrated that there are certain electron kinetic energies where the cross section for the formation of neutral species is high (resonances), and in closely related electron-capture dissociation experiments on multiply charged cations, the actual fragmentation channels were obtained. Both for oligonucleotide anions and cations, formation of radicals by loss and capture of electrons, respectively, largely governs the dissociation patterns. This is of high relevance for sequencing. Finally, gas-phase absorption spectroscopy has revealed differences in absorption between mononucleotides, single strands, double strands and quadruplexes, which is related to the electronic coupling between two or more bases.

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Abbreviations

DEA:

Dissociative electron attachment

DR:

Dissociative recombination

DSB:

Double strand break

ECD:

Electron capture dissociation

EDD:

Electron detachment dissociation

EPD:

Electron photodetachment dissociation

ETD:

Electron transfer dissociation

FTICR:

Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance

HOMO:

Highest occupied molecular orbital

IC:

Internal conversion

SSB:

Single strand break

UV:

Ultraviolet

VDE:

Vertical detachment energy

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark

    Steen Brøndsted Nielsen

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Correspondence to Steen Brøndsted Nielsen .

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  1. Université de Bordeaux, Institut Européen de Chimie et Biologie, Pessac, France

    Valérie Gabelica

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Brøndsted Nielsen, S. (2014). Interactions Between Nucleic Acid Ions and Electrons and Photons. In: Gabelica, V. (eds) Nucleic Acids in the Gas Phase. Physical Chemistry in Action. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-54842-0_4

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