5-O-Coumarinyl-D-xylulose was studied as a fluorogenic substrate for the stereospecific assay of transketolase enzyme. Enzymatic C2-C3 cleavage released an alpha-hydroxyl, beta-coumarinyl substituted aldehyde. Although the subsequent P-elimination step was rate limiting under chemical or enzymatic catalysis, we detected a TK activity as low as 0.7 mlU. To improve the fluorescence signal release, kinetic and product distribution analyses of this reaction were performed by LC/UV/MS coupling. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.