title: Indirect mass spectrometric methods for characterizing and sequencing oligonucleotides.
abstract: The use of mass spectrometry for the characterization and sequence determination of oligonucleotides is reviewed. This review focuses primarily on the use of mass spectrometry to analyze sequence-specific fragments of oligonucleotides that are generated via solution-phase chemical reactions. The majority of these "indirect" sequencing methods are a result of recent advances in electrospray ionization and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization for the generation of intact gas-phase ions from oligonucleotides. Descriptions of the current indirect sequencing protocols will be presented as well as a comparison of the applicability of these procedures for analyzing "real world" samples. The applicability of indirect mass spectrometric sequencing to antisense oligonucleotides will be discussed in detail. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803.
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Limbach