Comparative characteristics of a tryptophan molecule in the gas phase and water

The L and D isomers of the tryptophan (Trp) molecule and the (Trp)⁺ cation in the gas phase and water are calculated at the DFT level to reveal the effect of water considered in the dielectric continuum approximation on the electronic characteristics of the molecule. The distribution of effective atomic charges and bond lengths enables the prediction of the most probable parts of the chemical bond cleavage during the fragmentation of the molecule under the ionizing particle flux. These data are supplemented with a calculation of fragmentation energies. Zwitterionic structures characterized by the appearance of considerable dipole moments and a change in their orientation with respect to the ground state are distinguished among the possible isomeric forms in water.     

Migration of protons in a chain of tyrosine residues

This article deals with the proton migration in a tyrosine stack, which models the proton channels existing in a number of proteins, including tubulin. The magnesium ion Mg²⁺ within the complex with guanosine triphosphate facilitates dissociation of a water molecule through initiating a shift of protons along the chain composed of relatively distant tyrosine residues. The process is thermodynamically stable (ΔG₂₉₈<0). The energy barrier for the protein shift does not exceed 3.15 kJ/mole. A relatively weak electrostatic field mimicking electret properties of proteins facilitates long‐distance proton migration. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem 84: 409–415, 2001     

X-OH 2 + (X = C, O) cations: Vibrational spectra, stability, and electron capture reactions

Calculations of the potential energy surfaces of X-OH ₂ ⁺ cations (X = C, O) by the restricted and unrestricted Hartree-Fock methods (RHF, UHF) taking into account the correlation energy (MP-2) and by the CASSCF method are presented. All cations are found to be rather stable against X-O bond rupture and intermolecular rearrangement. The reaction of electron capture by these cations is studied.     

Dissociation of alkane ionized molecules

The subject of investigation is the fragmentation of variously charged molecular ions arising in col-lisions of several kiloelectronvolt H⁺, He²⁺, and Ar⁶⁺ ions with molecules of the simplest alkanes (from methane to butane). Using the method of time-of-flight mass spectrometry, the formation cross sections of dissociation-induced fragment ions are measured. The dissociation takes place when an incident ion captures an electron from a methane, ethane, or propane molecule. The role of additional ionization of the molecule, which accompanies the electron capture by the incident ion, is elucidated. The kinetic energy spectrum for protons resulting from the fragmentation of multiply charged alkane ions is determined. The most plausible kinetic energies of protons depending on the degree of ionization and molecule size fall into the range 1–25 eV. It is shown that, when the molecule loses several electrons, the kinetic energies of protons are governed by Coulomb interaction between all fragment ions and are determined by their flying apart from the relative spatial arrangement of corresponding atoms in a parent molecule.     

Spectroscopic and quantum chemical studies of isocytosine

The methods of electronic and vibrational (IR) spectroscopy were used to study the spectral properties of isocytosine in H₂O, D₂O, chloroform, and hexane in a wide concentration interval. Quantum chemical calculations of tautomeric forms and dimers of isocytosine were carried out. The bands of the calculated and experimental spectra were assigned. The results of the quantum calculations were compared with the experimental data. The spectral bands were classified according to the type of tautomer or dimer to which they belong.Translated from Teoreticheskaya i éksperimental'naya Khimiya, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp. 29–36, January–February, 1988.The authors are grateful to I. M. Ginzberg and L. F. Strelkova for their participation in the discussion of the infrared spectroscopy results.