Hydroxycarbonyl anion (m/z 45), a diagnostic marker for alpha-hydroxy carboxylic acids.

Collision-induced dissociation mass spectra of anions derived from alpha-hydroxy carboxylic acids (AHAs) show a diagnostic peak at m/z 45. Product ion spectra recorded from this m/z 45 ion confirm that it represents the hydroxycarbonyl anion [DIAGRAM: SEE TEXT], and not the formate anion [DIAGRAM: SEE TEXT] as sometimes described in the literature. For example, the formate anion is not only defiant to further fragmentation but is also unreactive toward CO2. In contrast, the hydroxycarbonyl anion easily fragments to produce a peak at m/z 17 for the hydroxyl anion, and also readily reacts with CO2 to produce a peak at m/z 61 for the bicarbonate anion. The hydrogen atom in the hydroxycarbonyl anion and that in the formate anion are not mobile within the skeletal framework of the ions, since the two ions did not manifest any interconversion under the conditions and time scales of our mass spectrometric experiments. The other significant product ion peak in the spectra of deprotonated AHAs represents a 46-Da loss. MS/MS data from appropriately deuteriated compounds confirmed that one hydrogen atom from the C-2 position, and the other from the hydroxy group are specifically removed for this loss of elements of formic acid. Moreover, the two oxygen atoms eliminated for the HCOOH loss originate exclusively from the carboxylate group.

Loss of benzene to generate an enolate anion by a site-specific double-hydrogen transfer during CID fragmentation of o-alkyl ethers of ortho-hydroxybenzoic acids.

Collision-induced dissociation of anions derived from ortho-alkyloxybenzoic acids provides a facile way of producing gaseous enolate anions. The alkyloxyphenyl anion produced after an initial loss of CO(2) undergoes elimination of a benzene molecule by a double-hydrogen transfer mechanism, unique to the ortho isomer, to form an enolate anion. Deuterium labeling studies confirmed that the two hydrogen atoms transferred in the benzene loss originate from positions 1 and 2 of the alkyl chain. An initial transfer of a hydrogen atom from the C-1 position forms a phenyl anion and a carbonyl compound, both of which remain closely associated as an ion/neutral complex. The complex breaks either directly to give the phenyl anion by eliminating the neutral carbonyl compound, or to form an enolate anion by transferring a hydrogen atom from the C-2 position and eliminating a benzene molecule in the process. The pronounced primary kinetic isotope effect observed when a deuterium atom is transferred from the C-1 position, compared to the weak effect seen for the transfer from the C-2 position, indicates that the first transfer is the rate determining step. Quantum mechanical calculations showed that the neutral loss of benzene is a thermodynamically favorable process. Under the conditions used, only the spectra from ortho isomers showed peaks at m/z 77 for the phenyl anion and m/z 93 for the phenoxyl anion, in addition to that for the ortho-specific enolate anion. Under high collision energy, the ortho isomers also produce a peak at m/z 137 for an alkene loss. The spectra of meta and para compounds show a peak at m/z 92 for the distonic anion produced by the homolysis of the O-C bond. Moreover, a small peak at m/z 136 for a distonic anion originating from an alkyl radical loss allows the differentiation of para compounds from meta isomers.

Low-energy collision-induced fragmentation of negative ions derived from ortho-, meta-, and para-hydroxyphenyl carbaldehydes, ketones, and related compounds.

Collision-induced dissociation (CID) mass spectra of anions derived from several hydroxyphenyl carbaldehydes and ketones were recorded and mechanistically rationalized. For example, the spectrum of m/z 121 ion of deprotonated ortho-hydroxybenzaldehyde shows an intense peak at m/z 93 for a loss of carbon monoxide attributable to an ortho-effect mediated by a charge-directed heterolytic fragmentation mechanism. In contrast, the m/z 121 ion derived from meta and para isomers undergoes a charge-remote homolytic cleavage to eliminate an *H and form a distonic anion radical, which eventually loses CO to produce a peak at m/z 92. In fact, for the para isomer, this two-step homolytic mechanism is the most dominant fragmentation pathway. The spectrum of the meta isomer on the other hand, shows two predominant peaks at m/z 92 and 93 representing both homolytic and heterolytic fragmentations, respectively. (18)O-isotope-labeling studies confirmed that the oxygen in the CO molecule that is eliminated from the anion of meta-hydroxybenzaldehyde originates from either the aldehydic or the phenolic group. In contrast, anions of ortho-hydroxybenzaldehyde and 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehyde, both of which show two consecutive CO eliminations, specifically lose the carbonyl oxygen first, followed by that of the phenolic group. Anions from 2-hydroxyphenyl alkyl ketones lose a ketene by a hydrogen transfer predominantly from the alpha position. Interestingly, a very significant charge-remote 1,4-elimination of a H(2) molecule was observed from the anion derived from 2,4-dihydroxybenzaldehyde. For this mechanism to operate, a labile hydrogen atom should be available on the hydroxyl group adjacent to the carbaldehyde functionality.

An unprecedented rearrangement in collision-induced mass spectrometric fragmentation of protonated benzylamines.

The collision-induced dissociation (CID) mass spectra of several protonated benzylamines are described and mechanistically rationalized. Under collision-induced decomposition conditions, protonated dibenzylamine, for example, loses ammonia, thereby forming an ion of m/z 181. Deuterium labeling experiments confirmed that the additional proton transferred to the nitrogen atom during this loss of ammonia comes from the ortho positions of the phenyl rings and not from the benzylic methylene groups. A mechanism based on an initial elongation of a C--N bond at the charge center that eventually cleaves the C--N bond to form an ion/neutral complex of benzyl cation and benzylamine is proposed to rationalize the results. The complex then proceeds to dissociate in several different ways: (1) a direct dissociation to yield a benzyl cation observed at m/z 91; (2) an electrophilic attack by the benzyl cation within the complex on the phenyl ring of the benzylamine to remove a pair of electrons from the aromatic sextet to form an arenium ion, which either donates a ring proton (or deuteron when present) to the amino group forming a protonated amine, which undergoes a charge-driven heterolytic cleavage to eliminate ammonia (or benzylamine) forming a benzylbenzyl cation observed at m/z 181, or undergoes a charge-driven heterolytic cleavage to eliminate diphenylmethane and an immonium ion; and (3) a hydride abstraction from a methylene group of the neutral benzylamine to the benzylic cation to eliminate toluene and form a substituted immonium ion. Corresponding benzylamine and dibenzylamine losses observed in the spectra of protonated tribenzylamine and tetrabenzyl ammonium ion, respectively, indicate that the postulated mechanism can be widely applied. The postulated mechanisms enabled proper prediction of mass spectral fragments expected from protonated butenafine, an antifungal drug.

Low-energy collision-induced dissociation mass spectra of protonated p-toluenesulfonamides derived from aliphatic amines.

Collision-induced fragmentation of protonated N-alkyl-p-toluenesulfonamides primarily undergo either an elimination of the amine to form CH3-(C6H4)-SO2(+) cation (m/z 155) or an alkene to form a cation for the protonated p-toluenesulfonamide (m/z 172). To comprehend the fragmentation pathways, several deuterated analogs of N-decyl-p-toluenesulfonamides were prepared and evaluated. Hypothetically, two mechanisms, both of which involve ion-neutral complexes, can be envisaged. In one mechanism, the S-N bond fragments to produce an intermediate [sulfonyl cation/amine] complex, which dissociates to afford the m/z 155 cation (Pathway A). In the other mechanism, the C-N bond dissociates to produce a different intermediate complex. The fragmentation of this [p-toluenesulfonamide/carbocation] complex eliminates p-toluenesulfonamide and releases the carbocation (Pathway B). Computations carried out by the Hartree-Fock method suggested that the Pathway B is more favorable. However, a peak for the carbocation is observed only when the carbocation formed is relatively stable. For example, the spectrum of N-phenylethyl-p-toluenesulfonamide is dominated by the peak at m/z 105 for the incipient phenylethyl cation, which rapidly isomerizes to the remarkably stable methylbenzyl cation. The peaks for the carbocations are weak or absent in the spectra of most of N-alkyl-p-toluenesulfonamides because alkyl carbocations, such as the decyl cation, rearrange to more stable secondary cations by 1,2-hydride and alkyl shifts. The energy freed is not dissipated, but gets internalized, causing the carbocation to dissociate either by transferring a proton to the sulfonamide or by releasing smaller alkenes to form smaller carbocations. The loss of the positional integrity in this way was proven by deuterium labeling experiments.

Collision-induced dissociation mass spectra of glucosinolate anions.

Collision-induced dissociation (CID) mass spectra of differently substituted glucosinolates were investigated under negative-ion mode. Data obtained from several glucosinolates and their isotopologues ((34)S and (2)H) revealed that many peaks observed are independent of the nature of the substituent group. For example, all investigated glucosinolate anions fragment to produce a product ion observed at m/z 195 for the thioglucose anion, which further dissociates via an ion/neutral complex to give two peaks at m/z 75 and 119. The other product ions observed at m/z 80, 96 and 97 are characteristic for the sulfate moiety. The peaks at m/z 259 and 275 have been attributed previously to glucose 1-sulfate anion and 1-thioglucose 2-sulfate anion, respectively. However, based on our tandem mass spectrometric experiments, we propose that the peak at m/z 275 represents the glucose 1-thiosulfate anion. In addition to the common peaks, the spectrum of phenyl glucosinolate (beta-D-Glucopyranose, 1-thio-, 1-[N-(sulfooxy)benzenecarboximidate] shows a substituent-group-specific peak at m/z 152 for C(6)H(5)-C(=NOH)S(-), the CID spectrum of which was indistinguishable from that of the anion of synthetic benzothiohydroxamic acid. Similarly, the m/z 201 peak in the spectrum of phenyl glucosinolate was attributed to C(6)H(5)-C(=S)OSO(2)(-).

An unexpected ion-molecule adduct in negative-ion collision-induced decomposition ion-trap mass spectra of halogenated benzoic acids.

The ion observed at m/z 145 when product ion spectra of iodobenzoate anions are recorded using ion-trap mass spectrometers corresponds to the adduct ion [I(H(2)O)](-). The elements of water required for the formation of this adduct do not originate from the precursor ion but from traces of moisture present in the helium buffer gas. A collision-induced decomposition (CID) spectrum recorded from the [M-H](-) ion (m/z 251) derived from 3-iodo[2,4,5,6-(2)H(4)]benzoic acid also showed an ion at m/z 145. This observation confirmed that the m/z 145 is not a product ion resulting from a direct neutral loss from the carboxylate anion. (79)Bromobenzoate anions produce similar results showing an ion at m/z 97 for [(79)Br(H(2)O)](-). The ion-molecule reaction observed here is unique to ion-trap mass spectrometers since a corresponding ion was not observed under our experimental conditions in spectra recorded with in-space tandem mass spectrometers such as triple quadrupole or quadrupole time-of-flight instruments.