Expanding the horizon of the thymine isostere biochemistry: unique cyclobutane dimers formed by photoreaction between a thymine and a toluene residue in the dinucleotide framework

Indications of 5' to 3' Interbase Electron Transfer as the First Step of Pyrimidine Dimer Formation Probed by a Dinucleotide Analog

Pyrimidine dimers are the most common DNA lesions generated under UV radiation. To reveal the molecular mechanisms behind their formation, it is of significance to reveal the roles of each pyrimidine residue. We thus replaced the 5'-pyrimidine residue with a photochemically inert xylene moiety (X). The electron-rich X can be readily oxidized but not reduced, defining the direction of interbase electron transfer (ET). Irradiation of the XpT dinucleotide under 254 nm UV light generates two major photoproducts: a pyrimidine (6-4) pyrimidone analog (6-4PP) and an analog of the so-called spore photoproduct (SP). Both products are formed by reaction at C4=O of the photo-excited 3'-thymidine (T), which indicates that excitation of a single "driver" residue is sufficient to trigger pyrimidine dimerization. Our quantum-chemical calculations demonstrated that photo-excited 3'-T accepts an electron from 5'-X. The resulting charge-separated radical pair lowers its energy upon formation of interbase covalent bonds, eventually yielding 6-4PP and SP.

Examining the base stacking interaction in a dinucleotide context via reversible cyclobutane dimer analogue formation under UV irradiation

Substituted tolyl groups are considered as close isosteres of the thymine (T) residue. They can be recognized by DNA polymerases as if they were thymine. Although these toluene derivatives are relatively inert toward radical additions, our recent finding suggests that the dinucleotide analogue TpTo (To = 2'-deoxy-1-(3-tolyl)-β-D-ribofuranose) supports an ortho photocycloaddition reaction upon UV irradiation, producing two cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer (CPD) analogues 2 and 3. Our report here further shows that formation of these CPD species is reversible under UVC irradiation, resembling the photochemical property of the CPD species formed between two Ts. Analyzing the stability of these CPD analogues suggests that one (2) is more stable than the other (3). The TpTo conformer responsible for 2 formation is also more stable than that responsible for 3 formation, as indicated by the Gibbs free energy change calculated from the constructed Bordwell thermodynamic cycle. These different stabilities are not due to the varying photochemical properties, as proved by quantum yields determined from the corresponding photoreactions. Instead, they are ascribed to the different stacking interaction between the T and the To rings both in the TpTo dinucleotide as well as in the formed CPD analogues. Factors contributing to the ring stacking interactions are also discussed. Our proof-of-concept approach suggests that a carefully designed Bordwell cycle coupled with reversible CPD formations under UV irradiation can be very useful in studying DNA base interactions.