Octopamine is a phenol analog of noradrenaline and acts as a neurotransmitter in invertebrates such as octopus. It is available as a hydrochloride salt to avoid air oxidation. We applied laser desorption supersonic jet technique to octopamine hydrochloride without any chemical preparations and found that molecular ion of octopamine, not salt, is observed. Resonance-enhanced 2-photon ionization and ultraviolet–ultraviolet hole-burning spectra of octopamine were measured, and four conformers were identified. This number of conformations is rationalized by conformations of ethanolamine chain and orientations of phenolic OH.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.