Prof. Scott McLuckey at Purdue University is supported by the Analytical and Surface Chemistry Program for investigations aimed at expanding analytical capabilities for the rapid, specific, and sensitive characterization of RNA/DNA oligomers with up to several hundred residues using instrumentation that can be widely available. This work seeks to advance the state-of-the-art in oligonucleotide characterization by mass spectrometry with particular emphasis placed on ion trap and time-of-flight mass analysis. Ion/ion chemistry plays a major role in this work as a means for ion transformation and structural characterization. Single proton transfer, metal ion transfer, and charge inversion are examples of reactions that can transform analyte ions from one form to another for subsequent analysis. Electron transfer reactions are examples of reactions that can play a direct role in primary structure characterization. Both beam-type and ion trap collisional activation of a wide range of parent ion types are explored using multidimensional MS to maximize structural information. The combination of ion/ion reactions with these activation methods will provide an unusually wide range of possibilities for the characterization of RNA/DNA oligomers.
Mass spectrometry currently plays a critical role in modern molecular biology research, particularly in the areas such as proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, and other large-scale measurement challenges. The strengths of mass spectrometry for characterizing post-transcriptional modifications of nucleic acids, however, have not yet been developed to the extent that they have for proteins, for example. This work, therefore, has significant potential for advancing nucleic acids research. A diverse set of graduate and undergraduate students engaged in this project will be exposed to a highly multi-disciplinary line of inquiry involving ion physics, ion chemistry, instrumentation, and analytical chemistry, in addition to molecular biology.
