J. Planar Chromatogr. 24, 497-502 (2011). HPTLC of isoswertisin-5-O-beta-D-glucoside (1), swertiamarin (2), and swertisin (3) as biomarkers on silica gel with ethyl acetate - methanol - water 16:2:1 in a twin-trough chamber with saturation for 30 min. Quantitative determination by absorbance measurement at 287 nm. Linearity was between 25-75 µg/mL for (1), 200-600 µg/mL for (2), and 100-300 µg/mL for (3). The relative standard deviation for instrumental precision, intra-assay precision, and intermediate precision was below 2 %. The average recovery was 99.9 % for (1), 99.6 % for (2), and 99.1 % for (3). The hRf values were 32 for (1), 41 for (2), and 52 for (3). The limit of detection was 570 ng, 740 ng, and 300 ng for (1), (2), and (3), respectively.

J. of Chromatogr. Sci. 49, 560-567 (2011). Evaluation of the fingerprinting efficiency of a novel two-dimensional analytical system composed of RP-TLC and RP-LC-MS. The efficiency of the system was compared with that of the one-dimensional system RP-TLC with MS detection. The test samples were phenolic acid extracts from Salvia lavandulifolia. Both systems can be applied to the fingerprint analysis of herbal extracts, but the two-dimensional system based on RP-TLC and RP-LC-MS can provide more abundant information.

Asian Journal of Chemistry 23 (5), 2098-2100 (2011). HPTLC of glycyrrhizic acid in herbal formulation on silica gel with chloroform - glacial acetic acid - methanol - water 15:8:3:2. The hRf value of glycyrrhizic acid was 28. Quantitative evaluation by absorbance measurement at 254 nm. The method was found to be linear in the range of 100-500 ng/band with average recovery between 99-102 %.

J. Planar Chromatogr. 24, 541-544 (2011). HPTLC of alpha-asarone (alpha-(1,2,4-trimethoxy-5-[(E)-prop-1-enyl]benzene) in rhizome extracts of Acorus calamus on silica gel with toluene - ethyl acetate 8:3 in a twin-trough chamber with saturation for 30 min. Detection and quantitative determination by densitometry at 254 nm. The linearity was in the range of 200-1000 ng/zone with a correlation coefficient of 0.996. The hRf was 71. LOD and LOQ of the standard were 60 and 173 ng/zone, respectively. Robustness was performed at concentration levels of 200, 400, and 800 ng/zone and the %RSD of peak areas was calculated. The %RSD for robustness analysis was less than 2 % in all cases, which indicated that the experimental procedure was in the range of acceptability as there was not much deviation.

Phytochem. Anal. 24, 1-24 (2013) The application of chemometrics in combination with chromatographic fingerprining was reviewed. The authors described how this combination allowed to find correlation between different variables such as molecular profile and genetic variability and their geographical origins and growing conditions.

Chinese J. of Medication & Clinics 12 (6), 768-769 (2012). Alliin (s-allyl-L-cysteine sulfoxide) is a sulfur containing amino acid found in garlic, which has antibacterial and antioxidant activities and is widely used as a component in Chinese drug formulations. For quality control, TLC on silica gel with n-butanol – glacial acetic acid – water 4:1:1, detection by spraying with 0.2 % ninhydrin and heating at 105 ºC for 5 min and viewing in daylight.

J. of China Pharm. 25 (8), 772-775 (2011). Safflower, the dried flower of Carthamus tinctorius L. is a herbal TCM drug for invigorating the circulation of blood, stimulating the menstrual flow, dissipating blood stasis, relieving pain, and is prescribed clinically to cure amenorrhea, falling injuries and skin and external diseases. Due to the lack of the source some counterfeits have been found on the market in recent years. The methods were studied for differentiating the dyes used by the market for adulteration of safflower. For dyes, TLC of the extracts of the crude drugs on silica gel firstly with chloroform – methanol – glacial acetic acid 7:1:2, detection under daylight for identification of orange, then with ethyl acetate – n-butanol – ethanol – ammonia – water 1:3:3:1:1, detection under daylight for identification of acid red 73, lemon yellow and carminum respectively. Results obtained by HPLC were compatible with those obtained by TLC.

Inner Mongolian J. of Trad. Chinese Med. 10, 35-36 (2012). Jiangding Doukou Qufeng compound oral liquid is a herbal TCM preparation prescribed to effectively cure flatulence, loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting. TLC of the extracts of the preparations on silica gel 1) for Cortex Cinnamomi and Foeniculum vulgare, with petroleum ether (60-90 ºC) – ethyl acetate 17:3, detection by spraying with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine solution in 2N hydrochloric acid and viewing in daylight; 2) for Rhizoma Zingiberis, with petroleum ether (60-90 ºC) – chloroform – ethyl acetate 2:1:1, detection by spraying with 2 % vanillin in sulfuric acid – ethanol 1:200 and heating at 105 °C until the zones were visible in daylight.