Dimitra Markovitsi

Emeritus Research Director (CNRS)

Tél. : 01 69 08 46 44
Email :

LIDYL, Bât 522,
CEA/Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette CEDEX, France

Research Interests

● Photophysics and photochemistry in condensed phase

● Time-resolved optical spectroscopy (absorption, fluorescence)

● Excited states, energy and charge transfer, charge separation, ionization, radical formation, photodamage

● UV-induced primary processes in DNA (excited states, intrinsic fluorescence, electron ejection, oxidative damage…)

● G-quadruplexes, bio-inspired nanostructures

Education

1983 PhD (Louis Pasteur University, Strasbourg, France)

1979 DEA (Paris VII-University, France)

1978 Degree in Chemical Engineering (National Technical University of Athens, Greece)

Committees and Services

2018- President of the International Foundation for Photochemistry

2001-2014 Head of the Laboratoire Francis Perrin, CEA-CNRS URA 245

2008-2012 Member of the French National Committee of Scientific Research

2007-2010 President of the European Photochemistry Association

2007-2009 Chemistry Scientific Committee, French Agency for Research (ANR)

2006-2013 Administration Council, Doctoral School “Chimie de Paris-Sud”

2004-2007 Administration Council, Doctoral School “Physicochimie du Sud de Paris”

1999-2001 Secretary General, Physical Chemistry Division SFC-SFP

1998-2000 French Physics Committee

20 Relevant Publications

1. Fundamentals of the Intrinsic DNA Fluorescence
T. Gustavsson, D. Markovitsi
Acc. Chem. Res. 54 (2021) 1226
2. Guanine Radicals Induced in DNA by Low-Energy Photoionization
E. Balanikas, A. Banyasz, T. Douki, G. Baldacchino, D. Markovitsi
Acc. Chem. Res. 53 (2020) 1511
3. Exciton Trapping Dynamics in DNA Multimers
R. Borrego-Varillas, G. Cerullo, D. Markovitsi
J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 10 (2019) 1639
4. A Comprehensive Study of Guanine Excited State Relaxation and Photoreactivity in G-Quadruplexes
L. Martinez-Fernandez, P. Changenet, A. Banyasz, T. Gustavsson, D. Markovitsi, R. Improta
J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 10 (2019) 6873
5.
Absorption of Low Energy UV Radiation by Human Telomere G-Quadruplexes Generates Long-Lived Guanine Radical Cations
Banyasz A, Balty C, Martinez-Fernandez L, Perron M, Douki T, Improta R & Markovitsi D.
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 139 (2017) 10561
6. UV-Induced Adenine Radicals Induced in DNA A-Tracts: Spectral and Dynamical Characterization
Banyasz A, Ketola T-M, Muñoz-Losa A, Rishi S, Adhikary A, Sevilla M-D, Martinez-Fernandez L, Improta R & Markovitsi D.
J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 7 (2016) 3949
7. UV-Induced DNA Damage: The Role of Electronic Excited States
D. Markovitsi
Photochem. Photobiol. 92 (2016) 45
8. Stabilization of Mixed Frenkel-Charge Transfer Excitons Extended across Both Strands of Guanine-Cytosine DNA Duplexes
M. Huix-Rotllant, J. Brazard, R. Improta, I. Burghardt, D. Markovitsi
J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 6 (2015) 2247
9. Electronic excitations in guanine quadruplexes
P. Changenet-Barret, Y. Hua, D. Markovitsi
Top. Curr. Chem. 356 (2015) 183
10. Effect of C5-Methylation of Cytosine on the Photoreactivity of DNA:
A Joint Experimental and Computational Study of TCG Trinucleotides

L. Esposito, A. Banyasz, T. Douki, M. Perron, D. Markovitsi, R. Improta
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 134 (2014) 10838
11. Electronic Excitation Energy Transfer between Nucleobases of Natural DNA
I. Vayá, T. Gustavsson, T. Douki, Y. Berlin, D. Markovitsi
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 134 (2012) 11366
12. Electronic excited states responsible for dimer formation upon UV absorption directly by thymine strands:
joint experimental and theoretical study

A. Banyasz, T. Douki, R. Improta, T. Gustavsson, D. Onidas, I. Vayá, M. Perron and D. Markovitsi
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 134 (2012) 14834
13. Base-pairing enhances fluorescence and favors cyclobutane dimer formation induced upon absorption of UVA radiation by DNA
A. Banyasz, I. Vayá, P. Changenet-Barret, T. Gustavsson, T. Douki, D. Markovitsi
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 133 (2011) 5163
14. Fluorescence of natural DNA: from the femtosecond to the nanosecond time-scales
I. Vayá, T. Gustavsson, F.A. Miannay, T. Douki, D. Markovitsi
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 132 (2010) 11834
15. Complexity of excited state dynamics in DNA
D. Markovitsi, F. Talbot, T. Gustavsson, D. Onidas, E. Lazzarotto, S. Marguet
Nature 441 (2006) E7
16. Collective behavior of Franck-Condon excited states and energy transfer in DNA double helices
D. Markovitsi, D. Onidas, T. Gustavsson, F. Talbot, E. Lazzarotto
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 127 (2005) 17130
17. Time-resolved study of thymine dimer formation
S. Marguet, D. Markovitsi
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 127 (2005) 5780
18. Influence of conformational dynamics on the exciton states of DNA oligomers
B. Bouvier, J.P. Dognon, R. Lavery, D. Markovitsi, P. Millié, D. Onidas, K. Zakrzewska
J. Phys. Chem. B 107 (2003) 13512
19. Dipolar coupling between electronic transitions of the DNA bases and its relevance to exciton states in double helices
B. Bouvier, T. Gustavsson, D. Markovitsi, P. Millié
Chem. Phys. 275 (2002) 75
20. One-dimensional triplet energy migration in columnar liquid crystals of octasubstituted phthalocyanines Markovitsi, D.
D. Markovitsi, I. Lécuyer, J. Simon
J. Phys. Chem. 95 (1991) 3620