The photosensitized oxidation of 2',3',5'-tris-(O-
tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanosine(8-oxoG) with singlet oxygen was studied by low-temperature NMR. A stable intermediate was characterizedat -60
C by
13C, 2D NMR HMBC spectra, and chemical shifts calculated by hybrid Hartree-Fock densityfunctional theory which agreed with the structure 5-hydroperoxy-8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanosine. Reductionof this intermediate at low temperature afforded the corresponding alcohol, the long-postulated 5-hydroxy-8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanosine, the last intermediate in the formation of spiroiminodihydantoin. Upon warmingto room temperature, this alcohol rearranges to form the spiroiminodihydantoin in good yield within 2 h.