Trends Anal. Chem. 76, 60-70 (2016). The review discusses suitable analytical approaches for the analysis of counterfeit and substandard pharmaceuticals in Tanzania. The authors highlight the importance of TLC and HPTLC for the quality control of pharmaceuticals in developing countries, having a repeatability and a reproducibility of the results comparable to those obtained with HPLC.

PLoS ONE 10(10), e0140782 (2015). HPTLC of lipids, extracted from several cancerous cell lines by an adapted Bligh and Dyer’s method, on silica gel with chloroform – methanol 4:1. Detection under UV after spraying with thioflavine S (10 μg/mL in acetone 80 %), glycosylated lipids were hued in red-rose by spraying with orcinol 0.5 % in sulfuric acid 0.5 M followed by heating; some of those lipids were absent from the elisidepsin-resistant strains. These lipids were purified by scraping off the plate and by extracting with chloroform – methanol 2:1, then they were applied on a nitrocellulose membrane for an overlay assay for binding with an elisidepsin-biotin derivative (dot-blotting). One lipid was positive and was identified by NMR as probably a glucosylceramide.

Journal of Guiyang College of Traditional Chinese Medicine 36 (4), 27-29 (2014). Jianpi Wenwei Jiaonang capsules are a herbal TCM used in the treatment of gastritis. For quality control, TLC for (1) Codonopsis pilosula (Franch.) Nannf., on silica gel with n-butanol – glacial acetic acid – water 14:2:1, detection by spraying with 10 % sulfuric acid in ethanol and heating at 100 °C until the zones are clearly visualized, viewing in daylight; (2) Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz., on silica gel with petroleum ether (60-90 °C) – ethyl acetate 10:1, detection by spraying with 5 % dimethylaminobenzaldehyde in sulfuric acid – ethanol 1:10 and heating until the zones are visualized in daylight; (3) Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf, on silica gel with toluene – ethyl acetate – formic acid 40:10:1, detection under UV 366 nm; (4) Corydalis yanhusuo W. T. Wang ex Z. Y. Su et C. Y., on silica gel with toluene – acetone 9:2, detection under UV 366 nm; (5) for Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge., on silica gel with toluene – chloroform – ethyl acetate – methanol - formic acid 4:6:8:1:4, detection under UV 254 nm.

J. Planar Chromatogr. 29, 22-29 (2016). HPTLC of 1-fluoro-2,4-dinitrophenyl-5-l-valine amide diastereomeric derivatives of aspartic acid, cysteine, and histidine on RP-18W with 40–80 % of acetonitrile in water, in 10 % steps. The retention analysis showed that retention of solutes diminished when the mobile phase became less polar.

J. Planar Chromatogr. 29, 256-263 (2016). HPTLC fingerprinting of flavonoids and phenolic acids in seven different Scutellaria species on silica gel with ethyl acetate – toluene – formic acid 50:49:1 for dichloromethane and methanolic extracts. Dichloromethane extracts were also developed on cyano phase with propan-2-ol – n-heptane – formic acid 50:49:1 and methanol – water – formic acid 60:39:1. The methanolic extracts were developed using methanol – water – formic acid 40:59:1. Detection with anisaldehyde reagent. Evaluation by chemometric processing. The best results for chemometric processing were obtained on the cyano phase.

J. Agric. Food Chem. 64, 1245-1255 (2016). Preparative HPTLC of gangliosides in the frontal lobe of piglets on silica gel with chloroform – methanol – calcium chloride 50:42:11. Fractions were subjected to a series of reactions to obtain sialic acid, glucose, galactose, N-acetyl-galactosamine, and fatty acid derivatives.

Polimeros. 26, 68-74 (2016). TLC of additives such as the plasticizer acetyl tributyl citrate (ATBC) and phthalates like dioctyl phthalate (DOP) and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) in ink containing polyurethane and nitrocellulose resin on silica gel with ethyl acetate – ethanol – water 14:7:6 (1), toluene (2) or toluene – ethyl acetate 7:3 (3). Detection by spraying with 1 % 2,6 dichloro-p-benzoquinone-4-chlorimine in ethanol. The hRF values with mobile phases (1) to (3) were 97, 41 and 46 for ATBC, 94, 47 and 46 for DOP and 96, 45 and 46 for DBP, respectively.

Chinese J. Mod. Drug Appl. 8 (5), 3-4 (2014). Danshen Wuweizi Pian tablet is a herbal TCM preparation for the treatment of coronary heart disease, acute and chronic persistent hepatitis and neurasthenia. For quality control, TLC (1) for Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge. and the standard tanshinone IIA, on silica gel with toluene – ethyl acetate 19:1, detection in daylight; (2) for Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill., on silica gel with petroleum ether (30-60 °C) – ethyl formate – formic acid 15:5:1, detection under UV 254 nm.