Computational Photophysics Research Group

Our research is focused in the field of photochemical reaction mechanisms and, in particular,
the photoinduced response of natural and modified nucleobases using theoretical and computational techniques.

The photophysical properties of the natural bases are very sensitive to minor structural modifications, such as substitution of a single atom or small groups around the main UV chromophore core. Consequently, the photochemical properties of DNA and RNA base
analogues are a valuable source for understanding the photostability of DNA.

In the last years, we have focused our attention on sulfur- (thiobases) and nitrogen-substituted (azabases) nucleobases. These species exhibit very efficient intersystem crossing mechanisms, which confers to them an important role in biological and medical applications as, for instance,
in photodynamic therapy.