Halogeno-substituted 2-aminobenzoic acid derivatives for negative ion fragmentation studies of N-linked carbohydrates.

Negative ion electrospray mass spectra of high-mannose N-linked glycans derivatised with 2-aminobenzoic acids and ionised from solutions containing ammonium hydroxide gave prominent M-H ions accompanied by weaker M-2H ions. Fragmentation of both types of ions gave prominent singly charged glycosidic cleavage ions containing the derivatised reducing terminus and ions from the non-reducing terminus that appeared to be products of cross-ring cleavages. Differentiation of these two groups of ions was conveniently achieved in a single spectrum by use of chloro- or bromo-substituted benzoic acids in order to label ions containing the derivative with an atom with a distinctive isotope pattern. Fragmentation of the doubly charged ions gave more abundant fragments, both singly and doubly charged, than did fragmentation of the singly charged ions, but information of chain branching was masked by the appearance of prominent ions produced by internal cleavages.