Initial Excited-State Structural Dynamics of dT and dA Oligonucleotide Homopentamers Using Resonance Raman Spectroscopy.

Photochemical damage of DNA is initiated by absorption of ultraviolet light, and the photoproducts are formed as a result of excited-state structural and electronic dynamics. We have used UV resonance Raman spectroscopy to measure the initial excited-state structural dynamics of homopentamers of adenosine monophosphate (3'-dApdApdApdApdAp-5') and thymidine monophosphate (3'-dTpdTpdTpdTpdTp-5') and compare them to those of the monomeric nucleobases. The resonance Raman spectra of the homopentamers are similar to those of the corresponding monomers. Initial excited-state slopes, homogeneous and inhomogeneous broadening, and other excited-state parameters were extracted by self-consistent simulation of the resonance Raman excitation profiles and absorption spectra with a time-dependent formalism and are also similar to the initial excited-state slopes and broadening in the nucleotide monomers. The lack of differences between the initial excited-state structural dynamics of the nucleotides within the pentamer and the isolated nucleobases is consistent with a model in which the formation of photochemical products in oligonucleotides and DNA is dependent on the formation of the transition-state structure within these polymers, dictated by their large-scale dynamics. These results are discussed in light of the known photochemistry of DNA and the nucleobases.