Collision Induced Dissociation of DNA Oligonucleotides Studied by Tandem Mass Spectrometry and Ion Mobility
- Multiply negatively charged DNA oligonucleotides of small sizes (n=15-40) have been subjected to a comprehensive tandem mass spectrometric study (MS/MS). Collision induced dissociation (CID) mass spectrometry (MS) was applied as a tool to break down isolated DNA oligonucleotides with a defined number of charges. Various lenghts and sequences were analyzed and all of them showed a comparable direct correlation regarding the threshold collision energy for fragmentation and dependence on number of charges on the precursor ions. It was also revealed that the increase in charges and thus Coulomb repulsion results in the transition from a folded, compact form to an elongated structure of the precursor ions.