pl
A A+ A++
A A A A

Search

Institute of Advanced Materials
Home  >  People  >  Rafał Szabla

Rafał Szabla, Ph.D.

Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego 27

PL-50370 Wrocław, Poland

rafal.szabla@pwr.edu.pl

Curriculum vitae
Bibliography
Files to download

Scientific interests

Investigations of thermal and photochemical reactions that could have enabled the formation of biomolecules on the early Earth; Development of computational protocols for the simulation of electron transfer processes in biomolecules; Bioorganic photochemistry.
Machine learning potentials for biomolecules.

ORCID ORCID 0000-0002-1668-8044

Selected scientific articles

  1. Szabla, R.*, Zdrowowicz, M.*, Spisz, P., Green, N.J., Stadlbauer, P., Kruse, H., Šponer, J., Rak, J., 2,6-diaminopurine promotes repair of DNA lesions under prebiotic conditions. Nat. Commun., 12, 3018, 2021. [Link] [Article PDF]

  2. Xu, J., Chmela, V., Green, N.J., Russel, D.A., Janicki, M.J., Góra, R.W., Szabla, R., Bond, A.D., Sutherland, J.D.*, Selective prebiotic formation of RNA pyrimidine and DNA purine nucleosides. Nature, 582, 60–66, 2020. [Link]

  3. Janicki, M.J., Kufner, C.L., Todd, Z.R., Kim, S.C., O”Flaherty, D.K., Szostak, J.W., Šponer, J., Góra, R.W.*, Sasselov, D.D.*, Szabla, R.*, Ribose alters the photochemical properties of\nthe nucleobase in thionated nucleosides. J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 12 (28), 6707–6713, 2021. [Link]

  4. Szakaradek, K., Stadlbauer, P., Sponer, J., Góra, R.W., Szabla, R.*, UV-induced hydrogen transfer in DNA base pairs promoted by dark nπ* states, Chem. Commun., 56, 201-204, 2020. [Article PDF]

  5. Szabla, R.,* Kruse, H., Stadlbauer P., Sponer, J., Sobolewski A.L., Sequential Electron Transfer Governs the UV-Induced Self-Repair of DNA Photolesions, Chem. Sci., 9, 3131-3140, 2018. [Article PDF]

  6. Xu, J., Tsanakopoulu, M., Magnani, C.J., Szabla, R.,* Sponer, J.E., Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Sutherland, J.D, A prebiotically plausible synthesis of pyrimidine β-ribonucleosides and their phosphate derivatives involving photoanomerization, Nat. Chem., 9, 303-309, 2017. [Link]

  1. Bertram, L., Roberts, S.J., Powner, M.W., Szabla, R.*, Photochemistry of 2-thiooxazole: a plausible prebiotic precursor to RNA nucleotides. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 24, 21406-21416, 2022. [Article PDF]

  2. Bestwick, J.S., Jones, D.J., Jones, H.E., Kalomenopoulos, P.G., Szabla, R.*, Lawrence, A.L.*, Total Synthesis and Prediction of Ulodione Natural Products Guided by DFT Calculations. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 61(32), e202207004, 2022. [Link]

  3. Janicki, M.J.*, Szabla, R.*, Sponer, J., Góra, R.W.*, UV-induced chalcogen bonding complex enables destructive photochemistry of guanine nucleosides. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 24, 8217-8224, 2022 [Article PDF]

  4. Reedy, E.S., Rademacher, J., Szabla, R., Campbell, E.K.*, Electronic absorptions of C5+ detected in the visible through action spectroscopy in a cryogenic trap. Mol. Phys., e1989070, 2021. [Link]

  5. Janicki, M.J., Kufner, C.L., Todd, Z.R., Kim, S.C., O”Flaherty, D.K., Szostak, J.W., Šponer, J., Góra, R.W.*, Sasselov, D.D.*, Szabla, R.*, Ribose alters the photochemical properties of\nthe nucleobase in thionated nucleosides. J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 12 (28), 6707–6713, 2021. [Link]

  6. Szabla, R.*, Zdrowowicz, M.*, Spisz, P., Green, N.J., Stadlbauer, P., Kruse, H., Šponer, J., Rak, J., 2,6-diaminopurine promotes repair of DNA lesions under prebiotic conditions. Nat. Commun., 12, 3018, 2021. [Link] [Article PDF]

  7. Xu, J., Chmela, V., Green, N.J., Russel, D.A., Janicki, M.J., Góra, R.W., Szabla, R., Bond, A.D., Sutherland, J.D.*, Selective prebiotic formation of RNA pyrimidine and DNA purine nucleosides. Nature, 582, 60–66, 2020. [Link]

  8. Kruse, H.*, Szabla, R., Šponer, J., Surprisingly Broad Applicability of the cc-pVnZ-F12 Basis Set for Ground and Excited States, J. Chem. Phys., 152 (21), 214104, 2020. [Link]

  9. Szakaradek, K., Stadlbauer, P., Sponer, J., Góra, R.W., Szabla, R.*, UV-induced hydrogen transfer in DNA base pairs promoted by dark nπ* states, Chem. Commun., 56, 201-204, 2020. [Article PDF]

  10. Todd, Z.R., Szabla, R., Szostak, J.W., Sasselov, D.D., UV photostability of three 2-aminoazoles with key roles in prebiotic chemistry on the early earth, Chem. Commun., 55, 10388-10391, 2019. [Article PDF]

  11. Gate, G., Szabla, R., Haggmark, M.R., Šponer, J., Sobolewski, A.L., de Vries, M.S., Photodynamics of alternative DNA base isoguanine, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 21, 13474-13485, 2019. [Article PDF]

  12. Brazevic, S., Nizinski, S., Szabla, R., Rode, M.F., Burdzinski, G., Photochromic reaction in 3H-naphthopyrans studied by vibrational spectroscopy and quantum chemical calculations, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 21, 11861-11870, 2019. [Link]

  13. Janicki, M.J., Roberts, S.J., Sponer, J., Powner, M.W., Gora, R.W. Szabla, R.,* Photostability of oxazoline RNA-precursors in UV-rich prebiotic environments. Chem. Commun., 54, 13407-13410, 2018. [Link]

  14. Roberts, S.J., Szabla, R., Todd Z.R., Stairs S., Bucar, D.-K., Sponer, J., Sasselov, D.D., Powner, M.W., Selective Prebiotic Conversion of Pyrimidine and Purine Anhydronucleosides into Watson-Crick Base-Pairing arabino-Furanosyl Nucleosides in Water. Nat. Commun., 9, 4073, 2018. [Article PDF]

  15. Janicki, M., Szabla, R.,* Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Solvation Effects Alter the Photochemistry of 2-Thiocytosine, Chem. Phys., 515, 502-508, 2018. [Link]

  16. Janicki, M., Szabla, R.,* Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Electron-driven proton transfer enables nonradiative photodeactivation in microhydrated 2-aminoimidazole, Farad. Discuss., 212, 345-358, 2018. [Link]

  17. Szabla, R.,* Kruse, H., Stadlbauer P., Sponer, J., Sobolewski A.L., Sequential Electron Transfer Governs the UV-Induced Self-Repair of DNA Photolesions, Chem. Sci., 9, 3131-3140, 2018. [Article PDF]

  18. Szabla, R.,* Kruse, H., Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Water-Chromophore Electron Transfer Determines the Photochemistry of Cytosine and Cytidine, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 19, 17531-17537, 2017. [Link]

  19. Xu, J., Tsanakopoulu, M., Magnani, C.J., Szabla, R.,* Sponer, J.E., Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Sutherland, J.D, A prebiotically plausible synthesis of pyrimidine β-ribonucleosides and their phosphate derivatives involving photoanomerization, Nat. Chem., 9, 303-309, 2017. [Link]

  20. Szabla, R.,* Gora, R.W., Janicki M., Sponer, J., Photorelaxation of Imidazole and Adenine via Electron-Driven Proton Transfer Along H2O Wires, Farad. Discuss., 195, 237-251, 2016. [Link]

  21. Szabla, R., Havrila, M., Kruse, H., Sponer, J., Comparative Assessment of Different RNA Tetranucleotides from the DFT-D3 and Force Field Perspective, J. Phys. Chem. B, 120 (41), 10635-10648, 2016. [Link]

  22. Szabla, R.,* Gora, R.W., Sponer, J., Ultrafast Excited-State Dynamics of Isocytosine, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 18 (30), 20208-20218, 2016. [Link]

  23. Sponer, J.E., Szabla, R., Gora, R.W., Saitta, A.M., Pietrucci, F., Saija, F., Di Mauro E., Saladino, R., Ferus, M., Civis, S., Sponer, J., Prebiotic synthesis of nucleic acids and their building blocks at the atomic level-merging models and mechanisms from advanced computations and experiments, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 18 (30), 20047-20066, 2016. [Link]

  24. Civis, S., Szabla, R., Szyja, B.M., Smykowski, D., Ivanek, O., Knizek, A., Kubelik,P., Sponer, J., Ferus, M., Sponer, J.E., TiO2-catalyzed synthesis of sugars from formaldehyde in extraterrestrial impacts on the early Earth, Sci. Rep., 6, 23199, 2016. [Article PDF]

  25. Szabla, R.,* Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Electron Driven Proton Transfer Along H2O Wires Enables Photorelaxation of πσ∗ States in Chromophore-Water Clusters, J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 6 (8), 1467-1471, 2015. [Link]

  26. Szabla, R.,* Campos, J., Sponer, J.E, Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Sutherland, J.D., Excited-state hydrogen atom abstraction initiates the photochemistry of β-2′-deoxycytidine, Chem. Sci., 6 (3), 2035-2043, 2015. [Article PDF]

  27. Szabla, R.,* Sponer, J.E., Sponer, J., Sobolewski, A.L., Gora, R.W., Solvent effects on the photochemistry of 4-aminoimidazole-5-carbonitrile, a prebiotically plausible precursor of purines. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 16 (33), 17617-17626, 2014. [Link]

  28. Szabla, R.,* Gora, R.W., Sponer, J., Sponer, J.E., Molecular mechanism of diaminomaleonitrile to diaminofumaronitrile photoisomerization: an intermediate step in the prebiotic formation of purine nucleobases. Chem. Eur. J., 20 (9), 2515-2521, 2014. [Link]

  29. Szabla, R., Tuna, D., Gora, R.W., Sponer, J., Sobolewski, A.L., Domcke W., Photochemistry of 2-Aminooxazole, a Hypothetical Prebiotic Precursor of RNA Nucleotides. J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 4 (16), 2785-2788, 2013. [Link]

  30. Szabla, R., Sponer, J.E., Sponer, J., Gora, R.W., Theoretical studies of the mechanism of 2-aminooxazole formation under prebiotically plausible conditions, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 15 (20), 7812-7818, 2013. [Link]