Comparison of spraying, dipping, and the derivapress for postchromatic derivatization with phosphomolybdic acid in the detection and quantification of neutral lipids by high-performance thin-layer chromatography

Summary Neutral lipids were measured by scanning densitometry after postchromatographic derivatization. Neutral lipids are often derivatized with phosphomolybdic acid reagent, which reacts to form highly visible, blue zones. Uniform application of this reagent to HPTLC plates is critical if quantification of neutral lipid bands is desired. In this paper we compare the quantitative and qualitative results observed by use of three methods of application of derivatization reagent — manual spraying, manual dipping, and use of the Derivapress. Results showed that dipping is the best method of reagent application for achieving quantitative data, and spraying is the best method for qualitative purposes. The Derivapress proved to be a simple and economical device for application of phosphomolybdic acid reagent to HPTLC plates. It enabled qualitative and quantitative analysis of neutral lipids.