Fluorescent high-performance liquid chromatography assay for lipophilic alcohols

A new ultrasensitive fluorescent derivatization procedure for chromatographic analysis of primary, secondary, and nonpolar tertiary alcohols is described. The procedure uses Bodipy FL in basic dichloromethane solution with Mukaiyama’s reagent (2-chloro-1-methylpyridinium iodide) to form highly fluorescent ester derivatives that can be separated by silica normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Rhodamine WT and Oregon green 488 were also useful derivatization reagents. The detection limit for detection of cholesterol and bryostatin by Bodipy FL was less than 1 fmol. The reaction conditions are gentle enough that low concentrations of unstable alcohols such as bryostatin 1 can be measured.