In this work, we have investigated the proton transfer process of 3',5'-methyl phosphate-uridine with water at specific sites of the molecular species using the B3LYP/6-31+G* theory method. Our results indicate that the ribose and phosphate group do in fact influence the ability of the proton transfer process. Implications for water stabilization and mutagenicity are also discussed. (C) 2007 Published by Elsevier B.V.