J. Sep. Sci. 37, 2490-2498 (2014). HPTLC fingerprint of (1) cinnamic acid, (2) cinnamic alcohol, (3) coumarin, (4) 2-methoxy cinnamaldehyde, and (5) cinnamaldehyde in Cinnamomi Ramulus on silica gel with system 1 (cyclohexane - ethyl acetate 7:2) over a path of 8 cm, followed by air drying and second development with system 2 (cyclohexane - ethyl acetate - acetic acid 70:20:1), detection at UV 254 nm and UV 366 nm. The hRF values of (1) to (5) were 15, 28, 39, 51, and 56.

Chin. J. Inf. Tradit. Chin. Med. 20 (7), 61-63 (2013). Yulin Cha tea is a TCM preparation for regulating kidney, liver and spleen function, prescribed to treat infertility, male asthenospermia, women's ovarian dysfunction, etc. For quality control, TLC on silica gel (1) for Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge. with the lower phase of chloroform – ethyl acetate – methanol – water 4:5:5:2 after placing at 10 °C for an hour, detection under UV 254 nm; (2) for Cnidium monnieri L. Cuss. with toluene – ethyl acetate – n-hexane 3:3:2, detection at UV 254 nm; (3) for Schisandra chinensis with the upper phase of petroleum ether (30-60 °C) – ethyl formate – formic acid 15:5:1, detection at UV 254 nm; (4) for Fructus lycii with toluene – ethyl acetate – formic acid 30:20:1, detection at UV 366 nm. Quantitative determination of schisantherin A by HPLC.

Chinese J. Ethnomed. Ethnopharm. (8), 9-10 (2013). Chenxiang Dianxian San powder is a TCM compound for the treatment of various types of epilepsy. For quality control, TLC of Choisy and Pharbitis nil (Linn.) on silica gel with cyclohexane – ethyl acetate 9:1. Detection by spraying with 5 % vanillin in sulfuric acid – ethanol 1:4, followed by heating at 105 °C until the spots were visible.

J. Chinese Trad. Patent Med. 35 (12), 2754-2756 (2013). Shukang Pingchuan capsules are a herbal TCM for asthma. For quality control, TLC on silica gel (1) for Clematis chinensis, with cyclohexane – acetone – ethyl acetate 5:2:1; (2) for Agrimonia pilosa Ldb., with cyclohexane – ethyl acetate – glacial acetic acid 25:5:1; (3) for Platycodon grandiflorus (Jacq.) A. DC., with petroleum ether (30-60 °C) – ethyl acetate 3:1; (4) for Geosaurus, with benzene – ethyl acetate – formic acid 40:10:1, detection for (1-4) by spraying with 10 % sulfuric acid in ethanol and heating at 105 °C until the zones are visible in daylight, and for (4) under UV 366 nm.

Chinese J. of Ethnomed. & Ethnopharm. (10), 57-59 (2013). Sendeng-9 Tang decoction is a traditional Mongolian herbal preparation for treatment of joint swelling and pain. For quality control, TLC of its extracts (1) for Cortex Phellodendri Chinensis, on silica gel with benzene – ethyl acetate – methanol – isopropanol – ammonia 12:6:3:3:1 after saturation with ammonia vapor, detection under UV 365 nm; (2) for Sophora flavescens, on 2 % NaOH-containing silica gel with the lower phase of chloroform – methanol – ammonia 50:6:3 (stored for a night at < 10 ºC) and detection by spraying with (A) 5 % potassium bismuthate solution, (B) 5 % sodium nitrite in 70 % ethanol, and viewing in daylight; (3) for Gardenia jasminoides Ellis, on silica gel with ethyl acetate – acetone – formic acid – water 5:5:1:1, detection by spraying with 10 % sulfuric acid in ethanol and heating at 110 ºC until the zones are visible in daylight.

J. Planar Chromatogr. 29, 405-409 (2016). 2D-HPTLC of chlorogenic acid (1), rutin (2), caffeic acid (3), apigenin (4) and naringin (5) in ten samples of the selected Cirsium species on RP-18 with 2-butanone ‒ toluene ‒ acetic acid 9:10:1 used in the first direction and methanol ‒ water ‒ formic acid 4:5:1 used in the second direction. Detection by spraying with natural products reagent (1 g diphenylborinic acid 2-aminoethylester in 100 mL methanol) followed by PEG reagent (5 g PEG 4000 in 100 mL methanol). The hRF values were 71 for (1), 39 for (2), 57 for (3), 7 for (4) and 50 for (5) in the first direction and 36 for (1), 7 for (2), 82 for (3), 86 for (4) and 6 for (5) in the second direction.

J. Chromatogr. A 1468, 228-235 (2016). Development and validation of a rapid and simple screening method by HPTLC for antioxidant activity in samples of 16 algal species collected from local Victorian beaches. Quantification of fucoxanthin, one of the most abundant marine carotenoids directly from the HPTLC plates before derivatization either with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical or ferric trichloride to analyze antioxidants in marine algae, based on their ability to chelate iron ions or to scavenge non-biological stable free radical, respectively. Classification of algae species into 5 groups according to the chemical/antioxidant profiles by principal component analysis of obtained HPTLC fingerprints. The investigated brown algae samples were rich in non-polar and moderate-polar and phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity, while most of the phenolic iron chelators showed free radical scavenging activity. Strong positive and significant correlations between total phenolic content and DPPH radical scavenging activity showed that phenolic compounds, including flavonoids are the main contributors of antioxidant activity in these species, which could be considered for future applications in medicine, dietary supplements, cosmetics or food industries. Discussion of the advantages of the proposed methods in terms of screening for antioxidants and quantification of antioxidant constituents in complex mixtures using the flexible and versatile standard HPTLC system in the drug discovery, and the possibility of using the method for the bioassay-guided isolation of unknown natural antioxidants and subsequent identification if combined with spectroscopic identification.

J. China Pharm. 25 (2), 72-74 (2016). Baibai Keli granule is a herbal TCM for treatment of menorrhagia caused by Qi deficiency and blood-heat. For quality control, TLC of its extracts on silica gel (1) for Codonopsis pilosula (Franch.) Nannf., with n-butanol – formic acid 1:1, detection by spraying with 10 % sulfuric acid in ethanol and heating at 105 °C until the zones are visualized in daylight; (2) for Poria Cocos (Schw.) Wolf dry sclerotium, with petroleum ether (30-60 °C) – acetone 4:1, detection under UV 366 nm; (3) for Atractylodes macrocephala, with petroleum ether (60-90 ºC) – ethyl acetate 20:1, detection by spraying with 5 % vanillin in sulfuric acid – ethanol 4:1 and heating at 105 °C until the zones are visualized in daylight; (4) for Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge., with the lower phase of chloroform – ethyl acetate – methanol – water 3:3:2:1 under 10 ºC overnight, detection by spraying with 10 % sulfuric acid in ethanol and heating at 105 ºC until the zones are visualized, evaluation (A) in daylight and (B) at UV 366 nm. Quantification of glycyrrhizic acid by HPLC.