Synthesis of oligonucleotides containing the Dewar valence isomer of the (6-4) photoproduct and their application to (6-4) photolyase studies.

The (6-4) photoproduct, which is a major UV light-induced lesion formed between adjacent pyrimidine bases, is isomerized to its Dewar valence isomer by exposure to longer wavelengths. We have synthesized a phosphoramidite building block of the Dewar photoproduct formed at the thymidylyl(3'-5')thymidine site, and incorporated it into oligonucleotides on a DNA synthesizer, aiming to use them for biological studies. An alternative activator, benzimidazolium triflate, gave better results, while by-products were detected at longer retention time in the ordinary synthesis. We characterized the synthetic oligonucleotides by UV conversion, nuclease digestion and mass spectrometry. Their use in the study of the (6-4) photolyase, a DNA repair enzyme, revealed its different recognition modes between the (6-4) photoproduct and the Dewar isomer.