Selective fluorescence labeling of myristicin using Mizoroki-Heck coupling reaction. Application to nutmeg powder, oil, and human plasma samples

•First fluorescence labeling for the major toxic nutmeg constituent myristicin.•New labeling was based on Mizoroki-Heck coupling for myristicin terminal alkene.•Myristicin was labeled by fluorescent aryl iodide “DIB-I”, then analyzed by HPLC-FL.•The method showed excellent sensitivity for myristicin down to 2.9 nM.•The method was applied successfully to nutmeg oil and powder, and human plasma. Myristicin [5-allyl-1‑methoxy-2,3-(methylenedioxy)benzene] is the major constituent of the seasoning nutmeg oil and powder. Sometimes myristicin is abused via its ingestion at high doses to cause hallucination. In these high doses, myristicin could cause severe adverse health effects, including convulsion, delirium, and palpitation. Hence there is a strong need for a sensitive method for its analysis, such as fluorescence determination. Myristicin has a very weak fluorescence and also lacks derivatizable groups like the carboxylic, hydroxyl, or amino group in its structure, which makes its fluorescence derivatization challenging. In this research, we developed a fluorescence labeling method for myristicin based on the Mizoroki-Heck coupling reaction of its terminal alkene with a fluorescent aryl iodide derivative, 4-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)iodobenzene (DIB-I). Then, we developed an HPLC fluorescence detection method for the determination of myristicin utilizing this labeling reaction. The developed method showed a good linear response for myristicin (r = 0.995) in the range of 0.01–10 µmol/L with excellent sensitivity down to the detection limit of 2.9 nmol/L (9.6 fmol/injection). Finally, the developed method could be successfully applied to determine myristicin content in nutmeg powder, oil samples, and human plasma with simple extraction methods and good recoveries ranging from 89.3 to 106%.