ORCID Profile
0000-0003-3192-0785
Current Organisation
University of Oxford
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Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-03-2022
Abstract: Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, mRNA-based vaccines have gained tremendous importance. The development and analysis of modified RNA molecules benefit from advanced mass spectrometry and require sufficient understanding of fragmentation processes. Analogous to the degradation of RNA in solution by autohydrolysis, backbone cleavage of RNA strands was equally observed in the gas phase however, the fragmentation mechanism remained elusive. In this work, autohydrolysis-like intermediates were generated from isolated RNA dinucleotides in the gas phase and investigated using cryogenic infrared spectroscopy in helium nanodroplets. Data from both experiment and density functional theory provide evidence for the formation of a five-membered cyclic phosphate intermediate and rule out linear or six-membered structures. Furthermore, the experiments show that another prominent condensed-phase reaction of RNA nucleotides can be induced in the gas phase: the tautomerization of cytosine. Both observed reactions are therefore highly universal and intrinsic properties of the investigated molecules.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-03-2020
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-02-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S00216-022-03927-6
Abstract: Tandem mass spectrometry is arguably the most important analytical tool for structure elucidation of lipids and other metabolites. By fragmenting intact lipid ions, valuable structural information such as the lipid class and fatty acyl composition are readily obtainable. The information content of a fragment spectrum can often be increased by the addition of metal cations. In particular, the use of silver ions is deeply rooted in the history of lipidomics due to their propensity to coordinate both electron-rich heteroatoms and C = C bonds in aliphatic chains. Not surprisingly, coordination of silver ions was found to enable the distinction of sn -isomers in glycerolipids by inducing reproducible intensity differences in the fragment spectra, which could, however, not be rationalized. Here, we investigate the fragmentation behaviors of silver-adducted sn - and double bond glycerophospholipid isomers by probing fragment structures using cryogenic gas-phase infrared (IR) spectroscopy. Our results confirm that neutral headgroup loss from silver-adducted glycerophospholipids leads to dioxolane-type fragments generated by intramolecular cyclization. By combining high-resolution IR spectroscopy and computational modelling of silver-adducted fragments, we offer qualitative explanations for different fragmentation behaviors of glycerophospholipid isomers. Overall, the results demonstrate that gas-phase IR spectroscopy of fragment ions can significantly contribute to our understanding of lipid dissociation mechanisms and the influence of coordinating cations. Graphical abstract
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2022
DOI: 10.1016/J.SBI.2021.11.006
Abstract: Glycans are intrinsically complex biomolecules that pose particular analytical challenges. Standard workflows for glycan analysis are based on mass spectrometry, often coupled with separation techniques such as liquid chromatography and ion mobility spectrometry. However, this approach does not yield direct structural information and cannot always distinguish between isomers. This gap might be filled in the future by gas-phase infrared spectroscopy, which has emerged as a promising structure-sensitive technique for glycan fingerprinting. This review highlights recent applications of gas-phase infrared spectroscopy for the analysis of synthetic and biological glycans and how they can be integrated into mass spectrometry-based workflows.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 22-02-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-021-21480-1
Abstract: Glycolipids are complex glycoconjugates composed of a glycan headgroup and a lipid moiety. Their modular biosynthesis creates a vast amount of erse and often isomeric structures, which fulfill highly specific biological functions. To date, no gold-standard analytical technique can provide a comprehensive structural elucidation of complex glycolipids, and insufficient tools for isomer distinction can lead to wrong assignments. Herein we use cryogenic gas-phase infrared spectroscopy to systematically investigate different kinds of isomerism in immunologically relevant glycolipids. We show that all structural features, including isomeric glycan headgroups, anomeric configurations and different lipid moieties, can be unambiguously resolved by diagnostic spectroscopic fingerprints in a narrow spectral range. The results allow for the characterization of isomeric glycolipid mixtures and biological applications.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 30-07-2020
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.1039/D3CP03776B
Abstract: In past decades, hydrogen bonds involving organic fluorine have been a highly disputed topic. Obtaining clear evidence for the presence of fluorine-specific interactions is generally difficult because of their weak...
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-05-2020
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-04-2022
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 07-09-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-06-2020
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-05-2021
DOI: 10.1007/S00216-021-03334-3
Abstract: The position and configuration of carbon-carbon double bonds in unsaturated fatty acids is crucial for their biological functions and influences health and disease. However, double bond isomers are not routinely distinguished by classical mass spectrometry workflows. Instead, they require sophisticated analytical approaches usually based on chemical derivatization and/or instrument modification. In this work, a novel strategy to investigate fatty acid double bond isomers (18:1) without prior chemical treatment or modification of the ion source was implemented by non-covalent adduct formation in the gas phase. Fatty acid adducts with sodium, pyridinium, trimethylammonium, dimethylammonium, and ammonium cations were characterized by a combination of cryogenic gas-phase infrared spectroscopy, ion mobility-mass spectrometry, and computational modeling. The results reveal subtle differences between double bond isomers and confirm three-dimensional geometries constrained by non-covalent ion-molecule interactions. Overall, this study on fatty acid adducts in the gas phase explores new avenues for the distinction of lipid double bond isomers and paves the way for further investigations of coordinating cations to increase resolution. Graphical abstract
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-04-2022
Abstract: Fluorination is a potent method to modulate chemical properties of glycans. Here, we study how C3‐ and C6‐fluorination of glucosyl building blocks influence the structure of the intermediate of the glycosylation reaction, the glycosyl cation. Using a combination of gas‐phase infrared spectroscopy and first‐principles theory, glycosyl cations generated from fluorinated and non‐fluorinated monosaccharides are structurally characterized. The results indicate that neighboring group participation of the C2‐benzoyl protecting group is the dominant structural motif for all building blocks, correlating with the β‐selectivity observed in glycosylation reactions. The infrared signatures indicate that participation of the benzoyl group in enhanced by resonance effects. Participation of remote acyl groups such as Fmoc or benzyl on the other hand is unfavored. The introduction of the less bulky fluorine leads to a change in the conformation of the ring pucker, whereas the structure of the active dioxolenium site remains unchanged.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-05-2020
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 24-04-2023
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-06-2020
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-04-2022
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 27-10-2022
DOI: 10.1021/JACS.2C05859
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 05-11-2020
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 02-09-2021
DOI: 10.1021/JACS.1C06944
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-03-2022
Abstract: Im Laufe der COVID‐19 Pandemie haben mRNA‐basierte Impfstoffe an immenser Bedeutung gewonnen. Massenspektrometrie ist für die Entwicklung und Analyse von modifizierten RNA Molekülen unerlässlich, setzt jedoch ein grundlegendes Verständnis über Fragmentierungsprozesse voraus. Analog zu der Zersetzung von RNA in Lösung durch Autohydrolyse, kann die Spaltung des RNA Rückgrats ebenso in der Gasphase stattfinden. Bislang sind die Fragmentierungsmechanismen jedoch unzureichend untersucht. In dieser Arbeit wurden Intermediate aus isolierten RNA Dinukleotiden in der Gasphase generiert und mittels kryogener Infrarotspektroskopie in Helium‐Nanotröpfchen untersucht. Die experimentellen Daten, unterstützt durch Dichtefunktionaltheorie, liefern Hinweise dafür, dass die Bildung eines fünfgliedrigen zyklischen Phosphat‐Intermediats begünstigt ist, während lineare oder sechsgliedrige Strukturen ausgeschlossen werden können. Weiterhin zeigen die Experimente, dass eine zusätzliche, bekannte Reaktion von RNA Nukleotiden in Lösung auch in der Gasphase induziert werden kann: die Tautomerisierung von Cytosin. Die beiden beobachteten Reaktionen spiegeln daher universelle und intrinsische Eigenschaften der untersuchten Moleküle wider.
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.1039/D2SC06487A
Abstract: 3-Pyridylcarbinol ester derivatization introduces a universal probe for cryogenic gas-phase infrared spectroscopy of fatty acids that enables assignment of the position and configuration of carbon–carbon double bonds even in the presence of isomers.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: Germany
No related grants have been discovered for Carla Kirschbaum.