Application of mass spectrometry in nucleic acids research

Abstract

As a rapid, accurate and sensitive technique, mass spectrometry has been widely used in biological research area. Nucleic acids are the basic substance of life, and have been a hot research field in life science. In recent, mass spectrometry has become a powerful tool for scientists to study the nucleic acids, with rapid developments. This paper introduces the mass spectrometry for nucleic acids, and briefly review the application of mass spectrometry in the nucleic acids research of high order structures, interactions with small molecules, DNA damage and modification, mainly introducing the research achievements by Chinese scholars. 质谱技术具有快速、准确、灵敏度高等优点，近年来在生物分析方面得到了广泛的应用. 核酸作为生命的基本物质，一直是生命领域的研究热点，进展日新月异. 而质谱方法也成为了科学家研究核酸的强有力工具，具有广阔的发展前景. 本文介绍了核酸检测的质谱技术，并简要综述了质谱在核酸的高级结构研究、与小分子相互作用、DNA损伤与修饰等领域的应用，重点介绍了中国学者的研究成果.