Gas phase basicities of polyfunctional molecules. Part 3: Amino acids

Strong Bases and beyond: The Prominent Contribution of Neutral Push-Pull Organic Molecules towards Superbases in the Gas Phase

In this review, the principles of gas-phase proton basicity measurements and theoretical calculations are recalled as a reminder of how the basicity PA/GB scale, based on Brønsted-Lowry theory, was constructed in the gas-phase (PA-proton affinity and/or GB-gas-phase basicity in the enthalpy and Gibbs energy scale, respectively). The origins of exceptionally strong gas-phase basicity of some organic nitrogen bases containing N-sp3 (amines), N-sp2 (imines, amidines, guanidines, polyguanides, phosphazenes), and N-sp (nitriles) are rationalized. In particular, the role of push-pull nitrogen bases in the development of the gas-phase basicity in the superbasicity region is emphasized. Some reasons for the difficulties in measurements for poly-functional nitrogen bases are highlighted. Various structural phenomena being in relation with gas-phase acid-base equilibria that should be considered in quantum-chemical calculations of PA/GB parameters are discussed. The preparation methods for strong organic push-pull bases containing a N-sp2 site of protonation are briefly reviewed. Finally, recent trends in research on neutral organic superbases, leaning toward catalytic and other remarkable applications, are underlined.

Effects of charge on protein ion structure: Lessons from cation-to-anion, proton-transfer reactions

Collision cross-section values, which can be determined using ion mobility experiments, are sensitive to the structures of protein ions and useful for applications to structural biology and biophysics. Protein ions with different charge states can exhibit very different collision cross-section values, but a comprehensive understanding of this relationship remains elusive. Here, we review cation-to-anion, proton-transfer reactions (CAPTR), a method for generating a series of charge-reduced protein cations by reacting quadrupole-selected cations with even-electron monoanions. The resulting CAPTR products are analyzed using a combination of ion mobility, mass spectrometry, and collisional activation. We compare CAPTR to other charge-manipulation strategies and review the results of various CAPTR-based experiments, exploring their contribution to a deeper understanding of the relationship between protein ion structure and charge state.

Vibrational signatures of dynamic excess proton storage between primary amine and carboxylic acid groups

Ammonium and carboxylic moieties play a central role in proton-mediated processes of molecular recognition, charge transfer or chemical change in (bio)materials. Whereas both chemical groups constitute acid-base pairs in organic salt-bridge structures, they may as well host excess protons in acidic environments. The binding of excess protons often precedes proton transfer reactions and it is therefore of fundamental interest, though challenging from a quantum chemical perspective. As a benchmark for this process, we investigate proton storage in the amphoteric compound 5-aminovaleric acid (AV), within an intramolecular proton bond shared by its primary amine and carboxylic acid terminal groups. Infrared ion spectroscopy is combined with ab initio Molecular Dynamics (AIMD) calculations to expose and rationalize the spectral signatures of protonated AV and its deuterated isotopologues. The dynamic character of the proton bond confers a fluxional structure to the molecular framework, leading to wide-ranging bands in the vibrational spectrum. These features are reproduced with remarkable accuracy by AIMD computations, which serves to lay out microscopic insights into the excess proton binding scenario.

Lipid-related ion suppression on the herbicide atrazine in earthworm samples in ToF-SIMS and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry imaging and the role of gas-phase basicity

In mass spectrometry imaging (MSI), ion suppression can lead to a misinterpretation of results. Particularly phospholipids, most of which exhibit high gas-phase basicity (GB), are known to suppress the detection of metabolites and drugs. This study was initiated by the observation that the signal of an herbicide, i.e., atrazine, was suppressed in MSI investigations of earthworm tissue sections. Herbicide accumulation in earthworms was investigated by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI). Additionally, earthworm tissue sections without accumulation of atrazine but with a homogeneous spray deposition of the herbicide were analyzed to highlight region-specific ion suppression. Furthermore, the relationship of signal intensity and GB in binary mixtures of lipids, amino acids, and atrazine was investigated in both MSI techniques. The GB of atrazine was determined experimentally through a linear plot of the obtained intensity ratios of the binary amino acid mixtures, as well as theoretically. The GBs values for atrazine of 896 and 906 kJ/mol in ToF-SIMS and 933 and 987 kJ/mol in MALDI-MSI were determined experimentally and that of 913 kJ/mol by quantum mechanical calculations. Compared with the GB of a major lipid component, phosphatidylcholine (GBPC = 1044.7 kJ/mol), atrazine's experimentally and computationally determined GBs in this work are significantly lower, making it prone to ion suppression in biological samples containing polar lipids.

Protonation of serine: conformers, proton affinities and gas-phase basicities at the "gold standard" and beyond

The potential energy surfaces (PESs) of serine and its protonated counterparts are investigated to determine the structures of the minima. A total of 95 neutral serine, 15 N-(amino-) and 46 O-(carbonyl-)protonated serine conformers are found. Their relative energies, geometries and harmonic vibrational frequencies are determined at the MP2/aug-cc-pVDZ level of theory. To obtain highly accurate thermodynamic values, further computations are performed: the ten conformers with the lowest relative energies from each molecule type (neutral, N- and O-protonated) are further optimized using the explicitly correlated CCSD(T)-F12a/cc-pVDZ-F12 method (for neutral serine, harmonic vibrational frequencies were also computed). In addition, auxiliary corrections were determined: basis-set effects up to CCSD(T)-F12b/cc-pVQZ-F12, electron correlation effects up to CCSDT(Q), core correlation and second-order Douglas-Kroll relativistic effects along with zero-point energy contributions. Two important thermodynamic parameters (at 298.15 K), proton affinity (PA)/gas-phase basicity (GB) are calculated considering the two different protonation sites: 218.05 ± 0.2/209.86 ± 0.6 kcal mol^-1 and 205.87 ± 0.2/196.36 ± 0.3 kcal mol^-1 for the amino and carbonyl sites, respectively. The uncertainty of the determined values was approximated based on various sources including auxiliary corrections, basis-set effects, harmonic vibrational frequencies.

On Aromaticity of the Aromatic α-Amino Acids and Tuning of the NICS Indices to Find the Aromaticity Order

The NICS aromaticity indices of the rings in flexible phenylalanine (Phe), tryptophan (Trp), tyrosine (Tyr), and histidine (His) chiral molecules were analyzed. These molecules have several dozens of conformers, and their rings are slightly non-planar. Therefore, the population-averaged NICS_pav index was defined, and the NICS scans had to be performed with respect to planes found by the least-squares routine. A rule differentiating an obverse and a reverse ring face in aromatic amino acids was formulated. The NICS scan minima corresponding to the obverse and reverse face were unequal, which prompted us to use the term ring face aromaticity/ring face tropicity. It appeared that for Phe, Trp, Tyr, and His, the reverse face has always had higher ring face aromaticity/ring face tropicity than the obverse one. Despite the NICS modifications, uncertainty about the amino acid aromaticity order remained. This motivated us to use the integral INICS index newly proposed by Stanger as well. Then, the following sequence was obtained: Trp(phenyl) > Phe > Trp(pyrrole) > His > Tyr. The juxtaposition of the INICS indices of amino acids with that of some model rings revealed a fair transferability of the values. Finally, analysis of the substituent effect on INICS demonstrated that the aromaticity of Tyr is the lowest due to the strength of the OH group π-electron-donating effect able to perturb enough the ring charge distribution and its magnetic aromaticity. The NICS calculations were executed using the ARONICS program written within the project.

Binding Motifs in the Naked Complexes of Target Amino Acids with an Excerpt of Antitumor Active Biomolecule: An Ion Vibrational Spectroscopy Assay

The structures of proton-bound complexes of 5,7-dimethoxy-4H-chromen-4-one (1) and basic amino acids (AAs), namely, histidine (His) and lysine (Lys), have been examined by means of mass spectrometry coupled with IR ion spectroscopy and quantum chemical calculations. This selection of systems is based on the fact that 1 represents a portion of glabrescione B, a natural small molecule of promising antitumor activity, while His and Lys are protein residues lining the cavity of the alleged receptor binding site. These species are thus a model of the bioactive adduct, although clearly the isolated state of the present study bears little resemblance to the complex biological environment. A common feature of [1+AA+H]⁺ complexes is the presence of a protonated AA bound to neutral 1, in spite of the fact that the gas-phase basicity of 1 is comparable to those of Lys and His. The carbonyl group of 1 acts as a powerful hydrogen-bond acceptor. Within [1+AA+H]⁺ the side-chain substituents (imidazole group for His and terminal amino group for Lys) present comparable basic properties to those of the α-amino group, taking part to a cooperative hydrogen-bond network. Structural assignment, relying on the comparative analysis of the infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectrum and calculated IR spectra for the candidate geometries, derives from an examination over two frequency ranges: 900-1800 and 2900-3700 cm^-1 . Information gained from the latter one proved especially valuable, for example, pointing to the contribution of species characterized by an unperturbed carboxylic OH or imidazole NH stretching mode.

Combined Experimental and Theoretical Survey of the Gas-Phase Reactions of Serine-Ca2+ Adducts

The association of Ca²⁺ to serine and the subsequent gas-phase unimolecular reactivity of the [Ca(Ser)]²⁺ (Ser = Serine) adduct was investigated throughout the use of tandem mass spectrometry techniques and B3LYP/6-311+G(3df,2p)//B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) density functional theory calculations. In a first step, the structure and relative stability of all possible conformers of serine were obtained and analyzed, as well as the most stable [serine-Ca]²⁺ adducts. For the analysis of the different potential energy surfaces associated with the gas-phase unimolecular reactivity of these adducts, only those that differ by less than 100 kJ·mol^-1 from the global minimum were taken into account. In agreement with previous studies, the serine-Ca²⁺ global minimum corresponds to a charge-solvated structure in which Ca is tricoordinated to neutral serine. The major peaks observed in the nanoelectrospray-MS/MS spectrum of [Ca(Ser)]²⁺ adduct correspond to both Coulomb explosions, yielding either CaOH⁺ + [C₃,H₆,N,O₂]⁺ or [C₂,H₄,O,N]⁺ + [Ca(C,H₃,O₂)]⁺, and to the loss of neutrals, namely, CH₂O and H₂O. Our theoretical survey of the energy profile allow us to conclude that, although all the aforementioned fragmentation processes can have their origin at the global minimum, similar fragmentations involving low-lying conformers, both zwitterionic and nonzwitterionic, compete and should be considered to account for the observed reactivity. We have also found that in some specific cases post-transition state dynamics similar to the ones described before in the literature for formamide-Ca²⁺ reactions, may also play a role.

Gas phase basicities of polyfunctional molecules. Part 6: Cyanides and isocyanides

This paper gathers structural and thermochemical informations related to the gas-phase basicity of molecules containing cyanides (nitriles) and isocyanides (isonitriles) functional groups. It constitutes the sixth part of a general review devoted to gas-phase basicities of polyfunctional compounds. A large corpus of cyanides and isocyanides molecules is examined under seven major chapters. In the first one, a rapid overview of the definitions and methods leading to gas-phase basicity, GB, proton affinity, PA, and protonation entropy, Δ_p S°, is given. In the same chapter, several aspects of the gas phase chemistry of protonated cyanides and isocyanides are also presented. Chapters II-VI detail the protonation energetics of aliphatic, unsaturated, and heteroatom substituted (halogens, O, S, N, P) cyanides. A seventh chapter is devoted to isocyanides. Experimental data available in the literature (120 references) were reevaluated according to the presently adopted basicity scale that is the NIST database anchored to PA(NH₃ ) = 853.6 kJ/mol and GB (NH₃ ) = 819 kJ/mol. In this latter source, however, several erroneous values have been identified which were corrected in the present review. Structural and energetic information given by G4MP2 quantum chemistry computations on ca. 60 typical systems are presented. The present review includes the GB, PA, and Δ_p S° values of ca. 110 cyanides and isocyanides, and, for selected examples, is completed by a set of computed heats of formation (Δ_f H°) at 0 and 298 K.

Kinetic enantioselectivity of a protonated bis(diamido)-bridged basket resorcin[4]arene towards alanine peptides

Efficient enantiodiscrimination of some alanine-containing di- and tri-peptides by using chiral protonated bis(diamido)-bridged basket resorcin[4]arenes depends on several factors, including the basicity of the amino acid residues at the C- and N-termini of the peptide.

Gas phase basicities of polyfunctional molecules. Part 5: Non-aromatic sp2 nitrogen containing compounds

This paper constitutes the fifth part of a general review of the gas-phase protonation thermochemistry of polyfunctional molecules (Part 1: Theory and methods, Mass Spectrom Rev 2007, 26:775-835, Part 2: Saturated basic sites, Mass Spectrom Rev 2012, 31:353-390, Part 3: Amino acids, Mass Spectrom Rev 2012, 31:391-435, Part 4: Carbonyl as basic site, Mass Spectrom Rev 2015, 34:493-534). This part is devoted to non-aromatic molecules characterized by a lone pair located on a sp² nitrogen atom, it embraces functional groups such as imines, amidines, guanidines, diazenes, hydrazines, oximes, and phosphazenes. Specific examples are examined under five major chapters. In the first one, aliphatic and unsaturated (conjugated and cyclic) imines, hydrazones, and oximes are considered. A second chapter describes the protonation energetic of aliphatic, conjugated, or cyclic amidines. Guanidines, polyguanides, and biomolecules containing guanidine were examined in the third chapter. A fourth chapter describes the particular case of the phosphazene molecules. Finally, diazenes and azides were considered in the last chapter. Experimental data were re-evaluated according to the presently adopted basicity scale, i.e., PA(NH₃ ) = 853.6 kJ/mol, GB (NH₃ ) = 819 kJ/mol. Structural and energetic information given by G4MP2 quantum chemistry computations on typical systems are presented. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Mass Spec Rev 37:139-170, 2018.

Complexation of halide ions to tyrosine: role of non-covalent interactions evidenced by IRMPD spectroscopy

The binding motifs in the halide adducts with tyrosine ([Tyr + X]^-, X = Cl, Br, I) have been investigated and compared with the analogues with 3-nitrotyrosine (nitroTyr), a biomarker of protein nitration, in a solvent-free environment by mass-selected infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectroscopy over two IR frequency ranges, namely 950-1950 and 2800-3700 cm^-1. Extensive quantum chemical calculations at B3LYP, B3LYP-D3 and MP2 levels of theory have been performed using the 6-311++G(d,p) basis set to determine the geometry, relative energy and vibrational properties of likely isomers and interpret the measured spectra. A diagnostic carbonyl stretching band at ∼1720 cm^-1 from the intact carboxylic group characterizes the IRMPD spectra of both [Tyr + X]^- and [nitroTyr + X]^-, revealing that the canonical isomers (maintaining intact amino and carboxylic functions) are the prevalent structures. The spectroscopic evidence reveals the presence of multiple non-covalent forms. The halide complexes of tyrosine conform to a mixture of plane and phenol isomers. The contribution of phenol-bound isomers is sensitive to anion size, increasing from chloride to iodide, consistent with the decreasing basicity of the halide, with relative amounts depending on the relative energies of the respective structures. The stability of the most favorable phenol isomer with respect to the reference plane geometry is in fact 1.3, -2.1, -6.8 kJ mol^-1, for X = Cl, Br, I, respectively. The change in π-acidity by ring nitration also stabilizes anion-π interactions yielding ring isomers for [nitroTyr + X]^-, where the anion is placed above the face of the aromatic ring.

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry using a new primary ion beam generated by vacuum electrospray of a protic ionic liquid, propylammonium nitrate

RATIONALE

Protic ionic liquids have the potential to be useful materials for primary ion beams in terms of protonation, since they have active protons. Selecting protic ionic liquids suitable for primary ion beams is of great importance to increase molecular secondary ion yields. Propylammonium nitrate ([C₃ H₇ NH₃ ][NO₃ ]) seems promising in view of its proton affinity. It is likely that [C₃ H₇ NH₃ ]⁺ cations can act as proton donors, and [NO₃ ]^- anions can work as proton acceptors.

METHODS

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) experiments have been performed to verify the usefulness of [C₃ H₇ NH₃ ][NO₃ ]. A primary propylammonium nitrate cluster ion beam was generated by vacuum electrospray, and then used to analyze amino acids (arginine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid), angiotensin II and polyethylene glycol. Positive and negative secondary ion mass spectra were obtained to study both protonation and deprotonation.

RESULTS

The propylammonium nitrate cluster ion beam successfully generated protonated molecules [M + H]⁺ of all the analytes in positive ion mode. The primary ion beam also generated deprotonated molecules [M - H]^- of glutamic acid, aspartic acid and angiotensin II in negative ion mode. Additionally, adduct ions related to [C₃ H₇ NH₃ ][NO₃ ] were detected in the case of arginine and polyethylene glycol.

CONCLUSIONS

The TOF-SIMS experiments confirmed that the propylammonium nitrate cluster ion beam was useful in generating molecular secondary ions, demonstrating that it is well suited for a primary ion beam in TOF-SIMS.

Fast and accurate prediction of proton affinities: revisiting the extended Koopmans' theorem for protons

In this work we propose schemes based on the extended Koopmans' theorem for quantum nuclei (eKT), in the framework of the any particle molecular orbital approach (APMO/KT), for the quantitative prediction of gas phase proton affinities (PAs). The performance of these schemes has been tested on a set of 300 organic molecules containing diverse functional groups. The APMO/KT scheme scaled by functional group (APMO/KT-SC-FG) displays an overall mean absolute error of 1.1 kcal mol^-1 with respect to experimental data. Its performance in PA calculations is similar to that of post-Hartree-Fock composite methods or that of the APMO second order proton propagator (APMO/PP2) approach. The APMO/KT-SC-FG scheme is also employed to predict PAs of polyfunctional molecules such as the Nerve Agent VX and the 20 common α-amino acids, finding excellent agreement with available theoretical and/or experimental data. The accuracy of the predictions demonstrates that the APMO/KT-SC-FG scheme is a low-cost alternative to adiabatic methods for the calculation of accurate PAs. One of the most appealing features of the APMO/KT-SC-FG scheme, is that PAs can be derived from one single-point APMO Hartree-Fock calculation.

MALDI versus ESI: The Impact of the Ion Source on Peptide Identification

For mass spectrometry-based proteomic analyses, electrospray ionization (ESI) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) are the commonly used ionization techniques. To investigate the influence of the ion source on peptide detection in large-scale proteomics, an optimized GeLC/MS workflow was developed and applied either with ESI/MS or with MALDI/MS for the proteomic analysis of different human cell lines of pancreatic origin. Statistical analysis of the resulting data set with more than 72 000 peptides emphasized the complementary character of the two methods, as the percentage of peptides identified with both approaches was as low as 39%. Significant differences between the resulting peptide sets were observed with respect to amino acid composition, charge-related parameters, hydrophobicity, and modifications of the detected peptides and could be linked to factors governing the respective ion yields in ESI and MALDI.

Binary twinned-icosahedral [B21H18]− interacts with cyclodextrins as a precedent for its complexation with other organic motifs

A macropolyhedral boron hydride anion with two counterions can form stable complexes with β- and γ-cyclodextrin in the gas phase.

Trends for isolated amino acids and dipeptides: Conformation, divalent ion binding, and remarkable similarity of binding to calcium and lead

We derive structural and binding energy trends for twenty amino acids, their dipeptides, and their interactions with the divalent cations Ca2+, Ba2+, Sr2+, Cd2+, Pb2+, and Hg2+. The underlying data set consists of more than 45,000 first-principles predicted conformers with relative energies up to ~4 eV (~400 kJ/mol). We show that only very few distinct backbone structures of isolated amino acids and their dipeptides emerge as lowest-energy conformers. The isolated amino acids predominantly adopt structures that involve an acidic proton shared between the carboxy and amino function. Dipeptides adopt one of two intramolecular-hydrogen bonded conformations C5 or . Upon complexation with a divalent cation, the accessible conformational space shrinks and intramolecular hydrogen bonding is prevented due to strong electrostatic interaction of backbone and side chain functional groups with cations. Clear correlations emerge from the binding energies of the six divalent ions with amino acids and dipeptides. Cd2+ and Hg2+ show the largest binding energies-a potential correlation with their known high acute toxicities. Ca2+ and Pb2+ reveal almost identical binding energies across the entire series of amino acids and dipeptides. This observation validates past indications that ion-mimicry of calcium and lead should play an important role in a toxicological context.

Enhanced Basicity of Push-Pull Nitrogen Bases in the Gas Phase

Nitrogen bases containing one or more pushing amino-group(s) directly linked to a pulling cyano, imino, or phosphoimino group, as well as those in which the pushing and pulling moieties are separated by a conjugated spacer (C═X)_n, where X is CH or N, display an exceptionally strong basicity. The n-π conjugation between the pushing and pulling groups in such systems lowers the basicity of the pushing amino-group(s) and increases the basicity of the pulling cyano, imino, or phosphoimino group. In the gas phase, most of the so-called push-pull nitrogen bases exhibit a very high basicity. This paper presents an analysis of the exceptional gas-phase basicity, mostly in terms of experimental data, in relation with structure and conjugation of various subfamilies of push-pull nitrogen bases: nitriles, azoles, azines, amidines, guanidines, vinamidines, biguanides, and phosphazenes. The strong basicity of biomolecules containing a push-pull nitrogen substructure, such as bioamines, amino acids, and peptides containing push-pull side chains, nucleobases, and their nucleosides and nucleotides, is also analyzed. Progress and perspectives of experimental determinations of GBs and PAs of highly basic compounds, termed as "superbases", are presented and benchmarked on the basis of theoretical calculations on existing or hypothetical molecules.

Molecular thermodynamics of metabolism: quantum thermochemical calculations for key metabolites

The present work is the first of a series of papers aiming at a coherent and unified development of the thermodynamics of metabolism and the rationalization of feasibility analysis of metabolic pathways. The focus in this part is on high-level quantum chemical calculations of the thermochemical quantities of relatively heavy metabolites such as amino acids/oligopeptides, nucleosides, saccharides and their derivatives in the ideal gas state. The results of this study will be combined with the corresponding hydration/solvation results in subsequent parts of this work in order to derive the desired thermochemical quantities in aqueous solutions. The above metabolites exist in a vast conformational/isomerization space including rotational conformers, tautomers or anomers exhibiting often multiple or cooperative intramolecular hydrogen bonding. We examine the challenges posed by these features for the reliable estimation of thermochemical quantities. We discuss conformer search, conformer distribution and averaging processes. We further consider neutral metabolites as well as protonated and deprotonated metabolites. In addition to the traditional presentation of gas-phase acidities, basicities and proton affinities, we also examine heats and free energies of ionic species. We obtain simple linear relations between the thermochemical quantities of ions and the formation quantities of their neutral counterparts. Furthermore, we compare our calculations with reliable experimental measurements and predictive calculations from the literature, when available. Finally, we discuss the next steps and perspectives for this work.

First-principles data set of 45,892 isolated and cation-coordinated conformers of 20 proteinogenic amino acids

We present a structural data set of the 20 proteinogenic amino acids and their amino-methylated and acetylated (capped) dipeptides. Different protonation states of the backbone (uncharged and zwitterionic) were considered for the amino acids as well as varied side chain protonation states. Furthermore, we studied amino acids and dipeptides in complex with divalent cations (Ca²⁺, Ba²⁺, Sr²⁺, Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Hg²⁺). The database covers the conformational hierarchies of 280 systems in a wide relative energy range of up to 4 eV (390 kJ/mol), summing up to a total of 45,892 stationary points on the respective potential-energy surfaces. All systems were calculated on equal first-principles footing, applying density-functional theory in the generalized gradient approximation corrected for long-range van der Waals interactions. We show good agreement to available experimental data for gas-phase ion affinities. Our curated data can be utilized, for example, for a wide comparison across chemical space of the building blocks of life, for the parametrization of protein force fields, and for the calculation of reference spectra for biophysical applications.

On-line chiral analysis using the kinetic method

Chiral analysis of constituents in solution-phase reaction mixtures can be performed by tandem mass spectrometry using the kinetic method to determine the enantiomeric excess (ee).

Probing the Binding Interfaces of Protein Complexes Using Gas-Phase H/D Exchange Mass Spectrometry

Fast gas-phase hydrogen/deuterium exchange mediated by ND3 gas and measured by mass spectrometry (gas-phase HDX-MS) is a largely unharnessed, fast, and sensitive method for probing primary- and higher-order polypeptide structure. Labeling of heteroatom-bound non-amide hydrogens in a sub-millisecond time span after electrospray ionization by ND3 gas can provide structural insights into protein conformers present in solution. Here, we have explored the use of gas-phase HDX-MS for probing the higher-order structure and binding interfaces of protein complexes originating from native solution conditions. Lysozyme ions bound by an oligosaccharide incorporated less deuterium than the unbound ion. Similarly, trypsin ions showed reduced deuterium uptake when bound by the peptide ligand vasopressin. Our results are in good agreement with crystal structures of the native protein complexes, and illustrate that gas-phase HDX-MS can provide a sensitive and simple approach to measure the number of heteroatom-bound non-amide side-chain hydrogens involved in the binding interface of biologically relevant protein complexes.

Analysis of Native-Like Proteins and Protein Complexes Using Cation to Anion Proton Transfer Reactions (CAPTR)

Mass spectra of native-like protein complexes often exhibit narrow charge-state distributions, broad peaks, and contributions from multiple, coexisting species. These factors can make it challenging to interpret those spectra, particularly for mixtures with significant heterogeneity. Here we demonstrate the use of ion/ion proton transfer reactions to reduce the charge states of m/z-selected, native-like ions of proteins and protein complexes, a technique that we refer to as cation to anion proton transfer reactions (CAPTR). We then demonstrate that CAPTR can increase the accuracy of charge state assignments and the resolution of interfering species in native mass spectrometry. The CAPTR product ion spectra for pyruvate kinase exhibit ~30 peaks and enable unambiguous determination of the charge state of each peak, whereas the corresponding precursor spectra exhibit ~6 peaks and the assigned charge states have an uncertainty of ±3%. 15+ bovine serum albumin and 21+ yeast enolase dimer both appear near m/z 4450 and are completely unresolved in a mixture. After a single CAPTR event, the resulting product ions are baseline resolved. The separation of the product ions increases dramatically after each subsequent CAPTR event; 12 events resulted in a 3000-fold improvement in separation relative to the precursor ions. Finally, we introduce a framework for interpreting and predicting the figures of merit for CAPTR experiments. More generally, these results suggest that CAPTR strongly complements other mass spectrometry tools for analyzing proteins and protein complexes, particularly those in mixtures. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

Microhydration of Protonated Nα-Acetylhistidine: A Theoretical Approach

Extensive exploration of the potential energy surfaces of protonated Nα-acetylhistidine hydrated by 0-3 molecules of water was performed. The methodology combined hierarchical and genealogical (Darwin family tree) approaches using polarizable AMOEBA force field and M06 functional. It is demonstrated that this mixed approach allows recovering a larger number of conformers than the number recovered by using any one of the two methods alone. Hydration enthalpies of protonated Nα-acetylhistidine and of model compounds have been computed using higher theoretical methods, up to the G4MP2 procedure. Excellent agreement with experiment is observed for successive hydration of methylamonium and imidazolium cations using MP2/6-311++G(2d,2p)//M06/6-311++G(d,p) and G4MP2 methods, thereby validating the theory levels used for hydrated protonated Nα-acetylhistidine. It is found that the first hydration enthalpy of protonated Nα-acetylhistidine is ca. 10 kJ mol(-1) lower than that of imidazolium, a result explained by the local environment of the positively charged imidazolium moiety.

Gas-phase basicities of polyfunctional molecules. Part 4: Carbonyl groups as basic sites

This article constitutes the fourth part of a general review of the gas-phase protonation thermochemistry of polyfunctional molecules (Part 1: Theory and methods, Mass Spectrom Rev 2007, 26:775-835, Part 2: Saturated basic sites, Mass Spectrom Rev 2012, 31:353-390, Part 3: Amino acids, Mass Spectrom Rev 2012, 31:391-435). This fourth part is devoted to carbonyl containing polyfunctional molecules. After a short reminder of the methods of determination of gas-phase basicity and the underlying physicochemical concepts, specific examples are examined under two major chapters. In the first one, aliphatic and unsaturated (conjugated and cyclic) ketones, diketones, ketoalcohols, and ketoethers are considered. A second chapter describes the protonation energetic of gaseous acids and derivatives including diacids, diesters, diamides, anhydrides, imides, ureas, carbamates, amino acid derivatives, and peptides. Experimental data were re-evaluated according to the presently adopted basicity scale. Structural and energetic information given by G3 and G4 quantum chemistry computations on typical systems are presented.

The protonated and sodiated dimers of proline studied by IRMPD spectroscopy in the N-H and O-H stretching region and computational methods

IRMPD spectroscopy and computational chemistry techniques have been used to determine that the proton- and sodium-bound dimers of proline exist as a mixture of a number of different structures. Simulated annealing computations were found to be helpful in determining the unique structures of the protonated and sodiated dimers, augmenting chemical intuition. The experimental and computational results are consistent with the proton-bound dimer of N-protonated proline bound to zwitterionic proline. There was no spectroscopic evidence in the 3200-3800 cm(-1) region for a canonical structure which is predicted to have a weak N-H stretch at about 3440 cm(-1). A well resolved band at 1733 cm(-1) from a previous spectroscopic study (DOI: 10.1021/ja068715a ) was reassigned from a high energy canonical isomer to the C=O stretch of a lower energy zwitterionic structure. This band is a free carboxylate C=O stretch where protonated proline is hydrogen bonded to the other carboxylate oxygen which is also involved in an intramolecular hydrogen bond. Fifteen structures of the sodium bound proline dimer were computed to be within 10 kJ mol(-1) of Gibbs energy and eight structures were within 5 kJ mol(-1). None of these structures can be ruled out based on the experimental IRMPD spectrum. They all have an N-H stretching band predicted in a position that agrees with the experimental spectrum. However, only structures where one of the proline monomers is in the canonical form and having a free O-H bond can produce the band at ∼3600 cm(-1).

Gas-phase lithium cation affinity of glycine

The gas-phase lithium cation binding thermochemistry of glycine has been determined theoretically by quantum chemical calculations at the G4 level and experimentally by the extended kinetic method using electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry. The lithium cation affinity of glycine, ∆(Li)H°(298)(GLY), i.e. the∆(Li)H°(298) of the reaction GlyLi(+)→ Gly + Li(+)) given by the G4 method is equal to 241.4 kJ.mol(-1) if only the most stable conformer of glycine is considered or to 242.3 kJ.mol(-1) if the 298K equilibrium mixture of neutral conformers is included in the calculation. The ∆(Li)H°(298)(GLY) deduced from the extended kinetic method is obviously dependent on the choice of the Li(+) affinity scale, thus∆(Li)H°(298)(GLY) is equal to 228.7±0.9(2.0) kJ.mol(- 1) if anchored to the recently re-evaluated lithium cation affinity scale but shifted to 235.4±1.0 kJ.mol(-1) if G4 computed lithium cation affinities of the reference molecules is used. This difference of 6.3 kJ.mol(-1) may originate from a compression of the experimental lithium affinity scale in the high ∆(Li)H°(298) region. The entropy change associated with the reaction GlyLi(+)→Gly + Li(+) reveals a gain of approximately 15 J.mol(-) 1.K(-1) with respect to monodentate Li(+) acceptors. The origin of this excess entropy is attributed to the bidentate interaction between the Li(+) cation and both the carbonyl oxygen and the nitrogen atoms of glycine. The computed G4 Gibbs free energy,∆(Li)G°(298)(GLY) is equal to 205.3 kJ.mol(-1), a similar result, 201.0±3.4 kJ.mol(-1), is obtained from the experiment if the∆(Li)G°(298) of the reference molecules is anchored on the G4 results.

Theoretical spectroscopic studies on chemical and electronic structures of arginylglycine

The global minimum of the dipeptide ArgGly is found to be in the canonical form, rather than the zwitterionic form.

Mass spectrometry of analytical derivatives. 1. Cyanide cations in the spectra of N- alkyl-N-perfluoroacyl- α-amino acids and their methyl esters

The central mission for the development of the National Institute of Standards and Technology/National Institutes of Health/Environmental Protection Agency Mass Spectral Library is the acquisition of reference gas chromatography-mass spectrometry data for important compounds and their chemical modification products. The addition of reliable reference data of various derivatives of amino acids to The Library, and the study of their behavior under electron ionization conditions may be useful for their identification, structure elucidation and a better understanding of the data obtained when the same derivatives are subjected to other ionization methods. N-Alkyl-N-perfluoroacyl derivatives of amino acids readily produce previously unreported alkylnitrilium cations of composition [HC≡N-alkyl](+). Homologous [HC≡N-aryl](+) cations are typical for corresponding N-aryl analogs. The formation of other ions characteristic for these derivatives involves oxygen rearrangement giving rise to ions [C(n)F(2n+1)-C≡N(+)C(n)H(2n+1)] and [CnF(2n+1)-C≡N(+)-aryl]. The introduction of an N-benzyl substituent in a molecule favors a process producing benzylidene iminium cations. L-Threonine and L-cysteine derivatives exhibit more fragmentation pathways not typical for other α-amino acids; additionally, the N(ω)- amino group in L-lysine directs the dissociation process and provides structural information on the substitution at the amino functions in the molecule.

Zwitterionic versus canonical amino acids over the various defects in zeolites: a two-layer ONIOM calculation

Defects are often considered as the active sites for chemical reactions. Here a variety of defects in zeolites are used to stabilize zwitterionic glycine that is not self-stable in gas phase; in addition, effects of acidic strengths and zeolite channels on zwitterionic stabilization are demonstrated. Glycine zwitterions can be stabilized by all these defects and energetically prefer to canonical structures over Al and Ga Lewis acidic sites rather than Ti Lewis acidic site, silanol and titanol hydroxyls. For titanol (Ti-OH), glycine interacts with framework Ti and hydroxyl sites competitively, and the former with Lewis acidity predominates. The transformations from canonical to zwitterionic glycine are obviously more facile over Al and Ga Lewis acidic sites than over Ti Lewis acidic site, titanol and silanol hydroxyls. Charge transfers that generally increase with adsorption energies are found to largely decide the zwitterionic stabilization effects. Zeolite channels play a significant role during the stabilization process. In absence of zeolite channels, canonical structures predominate for all defects; glycine zwitterions remain stable over Al and Ga Lewis acidic sites and only with synergy of H-bonding interactions can exist over Ti Lewis acidic site, while automatically transform to canonical structures over silanol and titanol hydroxyls.

IR action spectroscopy shows competitive oxazolone and diketopiperazine formation in peptides depends on peptide length and identity of terminal residue in the departing fragment

The interplay between the entropically and enthalpically favored products of peptide fragmentation is probed using a combined experimental and theoretical approach. These b2 ion products can take either an oxazolone or diketopiperazine structure. Cleavage after the second amide bond is often a favorable process because the products are small ring structures that are particularly stable. These structures are structurally characterized by action IRMPD spectroscopy and semi-quantified using gas-phase hydrogen-deuterium exchange. The formation of the oxazolone and diketopiperazine has been thought to be largely governed by the identity of the first two residues at the N-terminus of the peptide. We show here that the length of the precursor peptide and identity of the third residue play a significant role in the formation of the diketopiperazine structure in peptides containing an N-terminal asparagine residue. This is additionally the first instance showing an N-terminal residue with an amide side chain can promote formation of the diketopiperazine b2 ion structure.

Collision-induced dissociation of diazirine-labeled peptide ions. Evidence for Brønsted-acid assisted elimination of nitrogen

Gas-phase dissociations were investigated for several peptide ions containing the Gly-Leu* N-terminal motif where Leu* was a modified norleucine residue containing the photolabile diazirine ring. Collisional activation of gas-phase peptide cations resulted in facile N₂ elimination that competed with backbone dissociations. A free lysine ammonium group can act as a Brønsted acid to facilitate N₂ elimination. This dissociation was accompanied by insertion of a lysine proton in the side chain of the photoleucine residue, as established by deuterium labeling and gas-phase sequencing of the products. Electron structure calculations were used to provide structures and energies of reactants, intermediates, and transition states for Gly-Leu*-Gly-Gly-Lys amide ions that were combined with RRKM calculations of unimolecular rate constants. The calculations indicated that Brønsted acid-catalyzed eliminations were kinetically preferred over direct loss of N₂ from the diazirine ring. Mechanisms are proposed to explain the proton-initiated reactions and discuss the reaction products. The non-catalyzed diazirine ring cleavage and N₂ loss is proposed as a thermometer dissociation for peptide ion dissociations.

Effect of the sarcosine residue on sequence scrambling in peptide b(5) ions

The effect of N-methylation on sequence scrambling in the fragmentation of b5 ions has been investigated by studying a variety of peptides containing sarcosine (N-methylglycine). The product ion mass spectra for the b5 ions derived from Sar-A-A-A-Y-A and Sar-A-A-Y-A-A show only minor signals for non-direct sequence ions the major fragmentation reactions occurring from the unrearranged structures. This is in contrast to the b5 ions where the Sar residue is replaced by Ala and sequence scrambling occurs. The b5 ion derived from Y-Sar-A-A-A-A shows a product ion mass spectrum essentially identical to the spectrum of the b5 ion derived from Sar-A-A-A-Y-A, indicating that in the former case macrocyclization has occurred but the macrocyclic form shows a strong preference to reopen to put the Sar residue in the N-terminal position. Similar results were obtained in the comparison of b5 ions derived from A-Sar-A-A-Y-A and Sar-A-A-Y-A-A. The product ion mass spectra of the MH(+) ions of Y-Sar-A-A-A-A and A-Sar-A-A-Y-A show substantial signals for non-direct sequence ions indicating that fragmentation of the MH(+) ions channels extensively through the respective b5 ions and further fragmentation of these species.

Effect of Intramolecular Hydrogen Bonds on the Gas-Phase Basicity of Guanidines

Three series of novel trisubstituted guanidines containing at least one hydrogen bond accepting (HBA) group were modelled using B3LYP/6–311+G(2df,p)//B3LYP/6–31G(d) calculations. Their structure was modified by incorporating a variety of different HBA groups covering a wide range of hydrogen bond strengths. Calculated gas-phase basicities (GBs) ranged from 1035 to 1181 kJ mol–1 depending on the nature of the substituent. To rationalise changes in the GB, a correlation of GB against two independent variables (pKHB and σ4B) was conducted where pKHB served as the descriptor of the hydrogen bond strength and σ4B was introduced to describe changes in the GBs in the open-chain model systems, i.e. in the absence of intramolecular hydrogen bond (IMHB), caused by the electronic effect of the propyl-HBA substituent. A very good correlation of the calculated gas-phase basicities against these two independent variables was established for all three sets of the bases.

Multifunctional Macrocyclic Receptors as Templates for Aromatic Amino Acids: A Rare Example of a Highly Selective Multi-Input Multi-Output Chemo-"Logic Gate"

Proton-bound [M⋅H⋅G]⁺ diastereomeric complexes between some chiral aromatic amino acids or dipeptides (G) and a chiral multifunctional macrocyclic receptor (M=Chirabite-A) undergo, in the gas phase, highly selective substitution and addition reactions by amines, such as 2-aminobutane and piperidine. All the [M⋅H⋅G]⁺ complexes follow time-dependent monoexponential decays. In some cases, the kinetic curves exhibit a plateau revealing the presence of unreactive [M⋅H⋅G]⁺ structures. In them, the amino acid is accommodated in the macrocycle cavity in the zwitterionic form by sharing its acidic hydrogen atoms with the pyridine nitrogen atoms of the host. The same interactions are structurally inaccessible to G=dipeptides or monofunctional amines, which then can be readily released from [M⋅H⋅G]⁺ . When the amino acid interacts with the amidocarbonyl oxygen atoms pointing outside the macrocycle cavity, it saves the canonical structure and can be readily displaced by the amine. The Chirabite-A may act as an efficient template for aromatic amino acids by releasing them or not depending upon the amino acid configuration and the basicity of the amine. These unique properties confer to the gas-phase diastereomeric [M⋅H⋅G]⁺ complexes the features of multi-input multi-output chemo-"logic gates".

From the mobile proton to wandering hydride ion: mechanistic aspects of gas-phase ion chemistry

Structural characterization of molecular species by mass spectrometry supposes the knowledge of the type of ions generated and the mechanism by which they dissociate. In this context, a need for a rationalization of electrospray ionization(+)(-) mass spectra of small molecules has been recently expressed. Similarly, at the other end of the mass scale, efforts are currently made to interpret the major fragmentation processes of protonated and deprotonated peptides and their reduced forms produced in electron capture or electron transfer experiments. Most fragmentation processes of molecular and pseudo-molecular ions produced in the ion source of a mass spectrometer may be described by a combination of several key mechanistic steps: simple bond dissociation, formation of ion-neutral complex intermediates, hydrogen atom, hydride ion or proton migrations and nucleophilic attack. Selected crucial aspects of these elementary reactions, occurring inside positively charged ions, will be recalled and illustrated by examples taken in recent mass spectrometry literature. Emphasis will be given on the protonation process and its consequence in terms of structure and energetic.