Use of thin-layer chromatography on silica gel for serum lipid fractionation and measurement in the routine clinical laboratory.

A procedure, appropriate to use in the routine laboratory, is described for thin-layer chromatographic separation of serum lipids on silica gel, followed by molybdate coloring and densitometry. Cholesteryl aniline is used as the internal standard. The procedure is recommended as a screening procedure for presenting graphically the lipid distribution in the serum. Fractions separated and values (±1 SD) obtained from light-transmission measurements, for 70 apparently healthy adults, were: phospholipids, 239 ± 69 mg/dl; monoglycerides, <5 mg/dl; cholesterol, 53 ± 12.2 mg/dl; diglycerides, <5 mg/dl; free fatty acids, 14.3 ± 8.9 mg/dl; triglycerides, 89 ± 30 mg/dl; and esterified cholesterol, 164 ± 25 mg/dI. The method was applied to the study of distribution of lipids in the serum of patients with various diseases.