Spectroscopy of 2-aminopurine: An MCSCF Study

Published

December 1, 1998

Author(s)

E L. Rachofsky, J B. Ross, Morris Krauss, R Osman

Abstract

2-aminopurine (2AP) is a highly fluorescent isomer of adenine that can be incorporated into DNA as a probe of structure, dynamics, and protein-DNA interactions. Interpretation of the fluorescence of 2AP in DNA requires a model of the electronic structure of this fluorophore in its ground and excited states. To this end, electronic structures and energies of the ground and lowest singlet excited states of 2-amino-9-methylpurine (2A9MP) were calculated by the multiconfiguration self-consistent field (MCSCF) method supplemented by multiconfiguration perturbation theory (MCQDPT). The molecular geometry was optimized in both of these electronic states to permit investigation of both electronic excitation and fluorescence emission. The predicted energies and transition dipoles were in good agreement with experiment. The permanent molecular dipole of 2A9MP increased upon excitation, suggesting that both the absorption and emission spectra should shift to slightly lower energies in polar solvents. The anomalous spectral shifts observed in water suggest that 2AP undergoes hydrogen bonding that better stabilizes the ground state than the excited state. From the calculated electrostatic potentials of these two states, the position at which this hydrogen bond forms was predicted. These results form a basis for understanding the excited states and possible intermolecular interactions of 2AP in DNA.

Proceedings Title

Acta Physica Polonica A

Volume

94

Issue

5-6

Conference Dates

July 23-27, 1998

Conference Location

Torun, PL

Conference Title

Jablonski Centennial Conference on Luminescence and Photophysics

Pub Type

Conferences

Keywords

2-amino-9-methylpurine, absorption energy, electrostatic potential, emission energy, geometry optimization, multireference perturbation energy

Citation

Rachofsky, E. , Ross, J. , Krauss, M. and Osman, R. (1998), Spectroscopy of 2-aminopurine: An MCSCF Study, Acta Physica Polonica A, Torun, PL (Accessed April 19, 2024)