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The role of metal ions in X-ray-induced photochemistry

Nature Chemistry volume 8, pages 237–241 (2016)Cite this article

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Abstract

Metal centres in biomolecules are recognized as being particularly sensitive to radiation damage by X-ray photons. This results in such molecules being both susceptible to an effective X-ray-induced loss of function and problematic to study using X-ray diffraction methods, with reliable structures of the metal centres difficult to obtain. Despite the abundance of experimental evidence, the mechanistic details of radiation damage at metal centres are unclear. Here, using ab initio calculations, we show that the absorption of X-rays by microsolvated Mg2+ results in a complicated chain of ultrafast electronic relaxation steps that comprise both intra- and intermolecular processes and last for a few hundred femtoseconds. At the end of this cascade the metal reverts to its original charge state, the immediate environment becomes multiply ionized and large concentrations of radicals and slow electrons build up in the metal's vicinity. We conclude that such cascades involving metal ions are essential to our understanding of radiation chemistry and radiation damage in biological environments.

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Figure 1: Modes of electronic relaxation of the microsolvated Mg4+ cation created by the core ionization of Mg2+ (photoelectron not shown) and subsequent Auger decay.
Figure 2: Schematic description of the electronic decay processes that take place after the core ionization of the hydrated Mg2+ cation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank N. V. Kryzhevoi, S. Klaiman, E. V. Gromov and P. Kolorenč for discussions and technical advice. Financial support of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (FOR 1789 ‘Interatomic Coulombic Decay’) is acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Theoretische Chemie, Physikalisch-Chemisches Institut, Universität Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 229, Heidelberg, D-69120, Germany

    V. Stumpf, K. Gokhberg & L. S. Cederbaum

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  1. V. Stumpf
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  2. K. Gokhberg
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  3. L. S. Cederbaum
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Contributions

V.S., K.G. and L.S.C. conceived the idea of electronic cascades in metal–ion complexes. V.S. and K.G. carried out the computations. V.S., K.G. and L.S.C. analysed the results and wrote the paper.

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Correspondence to K. Gokhberg.

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Stumpf, V., Gokhberg, K. & Cederbaum, L. The role of metal ions in X-ray-induced photochemistry. Nature Chem 8, 237–241 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nchem.2429

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