Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 19, 2026

GC-based Detection of Aldononitrile Acetate Derivatized Glucosamine and Muramic Acid for Microbial Residue Determination in Soil
Published on: May 19, 2012
Characterizing the electrospray ionization mass spectral fragmentation pattern of indole derivatives synthesized from
Shuxia Cao1, Hongmin Liu, Wen Xu
1Department of Chemistry, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China.
Abstract:
Four indole derivatives synthesized from 2-keto glycosides were analyzed by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MSn) with low-energy collision-induced dissociation to establish a general structural elucidation of indole derivatives. Their fragmentation pathways are proposed on the basis of the MSn studies and deuterium-labeled experiments. Indole derivatives undergo complicated gas-phase rearrangements in addition to simple bond cleavages. A rearrangement, which involves a contraction of the six-membered ring, was observed and a mechanism was proposed. The observations may have some potential applications in the interpretation of the mass spectra of indole derivatives.
Related Concept Videos
Mass Spectrometry: Aldehyde and Ketone Fragmentation
Mass Spectrometry: Molecular Fragmentation Overview
One type of fragmentation pattern is the cleavage of a single bond in the molecular ion. The cleavage leads to a radical and a cation. The cleavage can occur at...
Mass Spectrometry: Carboxylic Acid, Ester, and Amide Fragmentation
For example, the fragmentation of...
Mass Spectrometry: Cycloalkene Fragmentation
Chemical Ionization (CI) Mass Spectrometry
Mass Spectrometry: Cycloalkane Fragmentation
For example, cyclohexane molecular ions have a mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) of 84, which tends to produce a stronger signal than linear alkanes like hexane. This stability comes from...

