Multi-photon ionization (MPI) of the RNA base uracil has been studied in the wavelength range 220–270 nm, coinciding with excitation to the S2(ππ*) state. A fragment ion at m/z = 84 was produced by 2-photon absorption at wavelengths ≤232 nm and assigned to C3H4N2O+ following CO abstraction. This ion has not been observed in alternative dissociative ionization processes (notably electron impact) and its threshold is close to recent calculations of the minimum activation energy for a ring opening conical intersection to a σ(n-π)π* closed shell state. Moreover, the predicted ring opening transition leaves a CO group at one end of the isomer, apparently vulnerable to abstraction. An MPI mass spectrum of uracil-water clusters is presented for the first time and compared with an equivalent dry measurement. Hydration enhances certain fragment ion pathways (particularly C3H3NO+) but represses C3H4N2O+ production. This indicates that hydrogen bonding to water stabilizes uracil with respect to neutral excited-state ring opening.

Wavelength-dependent measurements of the RNA base uracil, undertaken with nanosecond ultraviolet laser pulses, have previously identified a fragment at m/z = 84 (corresponding to the CHNO ion) at excitation wavelengths ≤232 nm. This has been interpreted as a possible signature of a theoretically predicted ultrafast ring-opening occurring on a neutral excited state potential energy surface. To further investigate the dynamics of this mechanism, and also the non-adiabatic dynamics operating more generally in uracil, we have used a newly built ultra-high vacuum spectrometer incorporating a laser-based thermal desorption source to perform time-resolved ion-yield measurements at pump wavelengths of 267 nm, 220 nm, and 200 nm. We also report complementary data obtained for the related species 2-thiouracil following 267 nm excitation. Where direct comparisons can be made (267 nm), our findings are in good agreement with the previously reported measurements conducted on these systems using cold molecular beams, demonstrating that the role of initial internal energy on the excited state dynamics is negligible. Our 220 nm and 200 nm data also represent the first reported ultrafast study of uracil at pump wavelengths <250 nm, revealing extremely rapid (<200 fs) relaxation of the bright S(ππ) state. These measurements do not, however, provide any evidence for the appearance of the m/z = 84 fragment within the first few hundred picoseconds following excitation. This key finding indicates that the detection of this specific species in previous nanosecond work is not directly related to an ultrafast ring-opening process. An alternative excited state process, operating on a more extended time scale, remains an open possibility.

Recent multi-photon ionization (MPI) experiments on uracil revealed a fragment ion at m/z 84 that was proposed as a potential marker for ring opening in the electronically excited neutral molecule. The present MPI measurements on deuterated uracil identify the fragment as C 3 H 4 N 2 O + (uracil + less CO), a plausible dissociative ionization product from the theoretically predicted open-ring isomer. Equivalent measurements on thymine do not reveal an analogous CO loss channel, suggesting greater stability of the excited DNA base. MPI and electron impact ionization experiments have been carried out on uracil-adenine clusters in order to better understand the radiation response of uracil within RNA.Evidence for C 3 H 4 N 2 O + production from multi-photon-ionized uracil-adenine clusters is tentatively attributed to a significant population of π-stacked configurations in the neutral beam. Graphical AbstractHighlights UV multi-photon ionization measurements on deuterated uracil have identified a CO loss pathway that may indicate ring opening in the electronically excited neutral molecule. The first dissociative ionization experiments on uracil-adenine complexes have revealed that the CO loss channel is also accessible in these clusters.Keywords: Uracil; adenine-uracil clusters; fragmentation; multi-photon ionization; electron impact ionization; mass spectrometry Ryszka et al. Int. J. Mass. Spectrom. 396 (2016) 48 2 IntroductionThe dynamics and stabilities of nucleobases following excitation to their bright S 2 (ππ* of the ring-opening crossing seam [9] and the geometry of the predicted isomer indicates likely CO abstraction. Therefore MPI production of this fragment ion was proposed as a potential experimental marker for ring opening in neutral excited uracil, suggesting possibilities for diverse measurements exploring the process in depth (e.g. using coincidence and / or time-resolved methods). The first aim of the present work was to test if the new fragment ion is indeed due to CO loss by studying MPI of deuterated uracil (dominantly C 4 D 4 N 2 O 2 ). These results have the added value of identifying several previously debated fragments from the radical cation, while further evidence to assign specific peaks is provided by high-resolution MPI mass spectra. The paper also presents equivalent MPI measurements on thymine, for which no analogous ring-opening process has been predicted [9]. A distinctly higher pump energy (5.64 eV, 220 nm) was applied than in the previous MPI studies of thymine (4.34-4.77 eV, 285.7-260 nm) [6, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17], increasing the likelihood of isomeric transitions during radiationless deactivation. Finally, MPI and electron impact ionization (EII) experiments were carried out on uracil-adenine clusters as a step towards better understanding the dissociative ionization pathways of uracil within RNA. Whereas several spectroscopic studies have been carried out on adenine-thymine complexes in supersonic beams [18,19,20], to our knowledge no previous experiments on isolated u...

Keywords:Adenine Cluster Dissociative ionisation Hypoxanthine Multi-photon ionisation Electron impact ionisation a b s t r a c t Multi-photon ionisation (MPI) and electron impact ionisation (EII) mass spectrometry experiments have been carried out to probe unimolecular and intermolecular reactivities in hydrated adenine clusters. The effects of clustering with water on fragment ion production from adenine have been studied for the first time. While the observation of NH 4 + fragments indicated the dissociation of protonated adenine, the dominant hydration effects were enhanced C 4 H 4 N 4 + production and the suppression of dissociative ionisation pathways with high activation energies. These observations can be attributed to energy removal from the excited adenine radical cation via cluster dissociation. Comparisons of MPI and EII measurements provided the first experimental evidence supporting hypoxanthine formation in adenine-water clusters via theoretically predicted barrierless deamination reactions in closed shell complexes.

Abstract. Multi-photon ionization experiments have been carried out on thymine-water clusters in the gas phase. Metastable H2O loss from T + (H2O)n was observed at n ≥ 3 only. Ab initio quantum-chemical calculations of a large range of optimized T + (H2O)n conformers have been performed up to n = 4, enabling binding energies of water to be derived. These decrease smoothly with n, consistent with the general trend of increasing metastable H2O loss in the experimental data. The lowest-energy conformers of T + (H2O)3 and T + (H2O)4 feature intermolecular bonding via charge-dipole interactions, in contrast with the purely hydrogen-bonded neutrals. We found no evidence for a closed hydration shell at n = 4, also contrasting with studies of neutral clusters.