A widely applicable analytical system for biological stains: reverse-phase thin layer chromatography.

The suitability of reverse-phase thin layer chromatography using a commercial adsorbant and aqueous methanol as an analytical tool for biological stains was investigated. The wide range of applicability of this technique is shown by the fact that of 120 dyes used as biological stains, 84 of diverse chemical character were successfully chromatographed by varying only the water content of the eluent. Unsuccessful chromatography was due either to immobility or streaking. Dyes exhibiting this behavior can be identified prior to chromatography by inspection of their structural formulae. Rf values were found to be significantly correlated with the calculated partition coefficients. This relationship provides information for the identification of dye components revealed by chromatography and a discussion of its use in the chemical characterization of various dyestuffs is presented.