TLC analysis of Allium sativum constituents

A steadily increasing number of garlic (Allium sativum) preparations during the last years resulted in a high interest in practical analytical methods for its active principles. In the present work, TLC separation of alliin from other compounds was improved over previous methods. A modified ninhydrin detection reagent was used to optimize the differentiation between cysteine sulfoxides and other amino acid derivatives. In addition, a sensitive and specific colour reaction was developed for detection of allicin after TLC.