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Updated: Feb 4, 2026
Determination of the Gas-phase Acidities of Oligopeptides
Published on: June 24, 2013
Gas-phase rearrangement reaction of Schiff-base-modified peptide ions
Nan Wang1, Alice L Pilo1, Feifei Zhao1
1Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2084, USA.
Rationale:
Schiff base modification of peptides has been shown to facilitate their primary structural characterization via tandem mass spectrometry. However, we have discovered a novel rearrangement reaction via ion trap collisional activation involving the imine of the Schiff base and one of several functional groups, particularly the side chains of the basic residues lysine, arginine, and histidine, in the peptide.
Methods:
Gas-phase ion/ion reactions involving an aldehyde-containing reagent were used to generate Schiff-base-modified model peptides in a hybrid triple quadrupole/linear ion trap tandem mass spectrometer. Subsequent ion trap collisional activation was used to study the rearrangement reaction.
Results:
Schiff-base-modified peptide ions were found to undergo a rearrangement reaction that was observed to be either a major or minor contributor to the product ion spectrum, depending upon a variety of factors that include, for example, ion polarity, identity of the nucleophile in the peptide (e.g., side chains of lysine, histidine, and arginine), and the position of the nucleophile relative to the imine.
Conclusions:
Relatively low-energy rearrangement reactions can occur in Schiff-base-modified peptide ions that involve the imine of the Schiff base and a nucleophile present in the polypeptide. While this rearrangement process does not appear to compromise the structural information that can be generated via collisional activation of Schiff-base-modified peptide ions, it can siphon away signal from the structurally diagnostic processes in some instances.
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