The alkaline degradation of deoxyribonucleic acid derivatives

Abstract

Alkaline degradation of apurinic acid and apyrimidinic acid gave, in addition to oligonucleotides and inorganic phosphate, appreciable amounts of 2-oxocyclopent-1-enyl phosphate, identical with a sample obtained by the phosphorylation of cyclopentane-1,2-dione. A mechanism for the alkaline degradation of these deoxyribonucleic acid derivatives consistent with these results and those of other workers is proposed.