Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Photodegradation of Riboflavin under Alkaline Conditions: What can Gas-Phase Photolysis Tell Us About What Happens in Solution?

Version 1 : Received: 12 August 2021 / Approved: 14 August 2021 / Online: 14 August 2021 (14:17:00 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Wong, N.G.K.; Rhodes, C.; Dessent, C.E.H. Photodegradation of Riboflavin under Alkaline Conditions: What Can Gas-Phase Photolysis Tell Us about What Happens in Solution? Molecules 2021, 26, 6009. Wong, N.G.K.; Rhodes, C.; Dessent, C.E.H. Photodegradation of Riboflavin under Alkaline Conditions: What Can Gas-Phase Photolysis Tell Us about What Happens in Solution? Molecules 2021, 26, 6009.

Abstract

The application of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) as a direct method for detecting reactive intermediates is a technique of developing importance in the routine monitoring of solution-phase reaction pathways. Here, we utilize a novel on-line photolysis ESI-MS approach to detect the photoproducts of riboflavin in aqueous solution under mildly alkaline conditions. Riboflavin is a constituent of many food products, so its breakdown processes are of wide interest. Our on-line photolysis setup allows for solution-phase photolysis to occur within a syringe using UVA LEDs, immediately prior to being introduced into the mass spectrometer via ESI. Gas-phase photofragmentation studies via laser-interfaced mass spectrometry of deprotonated riboflavin, [RFH], the dominant solution-phase species under the conditions of our study, are presented alongside the solution-phase photolysis. The results obtained illustrate the extent to which gas-phase photolysis methods can inform our understanding of the corresponding solution-phase photochemistry. We determine that the solution-phase photofragmentation observed for [RFH] closely mirrors the gas-phase photochemistry, with the m/z 241 ion being the only major condensed-phase photoproduct. Further gas-phase photoproducts are observed at m/z 255, 212, and 145. The value of exploring both the gas- and solution-phase photochemistry to characterize photochemical reactions is discussed.

Keywords

laser spectroscopy; online photolysis; solution-phase photolysis; vitamin; flavins; mass spectrometry

Subject

Chemistry and Materials Science, Physical Chemistry

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