Dr. Susan Quinn

B8: School of Chemistry, University College Dublin, Ireland

Expertise

Holds the position of senior lecturer/associate professor in chemistry at UCD, which is ranked in the top 1 % of institutions world-wide with over 30,000 students drawn from over 120 countries. My research laboratories are in the O’Brien Centre for Science which houses world-leading research facilities. Here we research into the molecular response of DNA to light activation with emphasis on profiling the excited state dynamics of DNA that lead to photodamage. To do this we steady state spectroscopy to inform us of the structure of DNA and ultrafast spectroscopy to explore and chart the primary steps of photodamage. This research has evolved to consider indirect photodamage whereby molecular system directly bound to diverse DNA structures is electronically excited, both inorganic complexes and nanoparticles have been used. We also consider the use of nanoparticles and molecular probes to image and report on DNA function in an effort to contribute to diagnosis and treatment.

https://sites.google.com/site/sjquinngroup/

Role in LightDyNAmics

Supervisor of ESR8, Lead WP3

Selected Publications

P. M. Keane, J. P. Hall, F. E. Poynton, B. C. Poulsen, S. P. Gurung, I. P. Clark, I. V. Sazanovich, M. Towrie, T. Gunnlaugsson, C. J. Cardin, S. J. Quinn, J. M. Kelly. “Inosine can increase DNA’s susceptibility to photo-oxidation by a Ru(II) complex due to structural change in the minor groove.” Chem. Eur. J., 2017, 2310344-10351, 1281–1287.
P. M. Keane, F. R. Baptista, S. P. Gurung, S. J. Devereux, I. V. Sazanovich, M. Towrie, J. A. Brazier, C. J. Cardin, J. M. Kelly, S. J. Quinn. “Long-Lived Excited-State Dynamics of i-Motif Structures Probed by Time-Resolved Infrared Spectroscopy.” ChemPhysChem, 2016, 17, 1281–1287.
J. P. Hall, F. E. Poynton, P. M. Keane, S. P. Gurung, J. A. Brazier, D. J. Cardin, G. Winter, T. Gunnlaugsson, I.V. Sazanovich, M. Towrie, C. J. Cardin, J. M. Kelly, S. J. Quinn. “Monitoring one-electron photo-oxidation of guanine in DNA crystals using ultrafast infrared spectroscopy.” Nat. Chem., 2015, 7, 961-7.
J. R. Ryan, F. E. Poynton, R. B. P. Elmes, M. Erby, C. D. Williams, S. J. Quinn. “Gunnlaugsson TUnexpected DNA binding properties with correlated downstream biological applications in mono vs. bis-1,8-naphthalimide Ru(II)-polypyridyl conjugates.” Dalton Trans., 2015, 44,16332-44.
G. W. Doorley, M. Wojdyla, G. W. Watson, M. Towrie, A. W. Parker, J. M. Kelly, S. J. Quinn. “Tracking DNA Excited States by Picosecond-Time-Resolved Infrared Spectroscopy: Signature Band for a Charge-Transfer Excited State in Stacked Adenine–Thymine Systems.” J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 2013, 4, 2739–2744.