HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID-CHROMATOGRAPHIC DETERMINATION AND STANDARDIZATION OF AGMATINE

In order to standardize the reversed-phase high-performance liquid chr omatographic (RP-HPLC) determination of natural polyamines, particular ly of agmatine, which is important in plant physiology, a simple dansy lation and thin-layer chromatography (TLC) procedure was developed for the separation and purification of dansyl-agmatine. The monodansyl st ructure of the agmatine derivative was verified by mass spectrometry. Dansyl-agmatine was used as a reliable reference compound for the vali dation of an improved RP-HPLC method and to the quantitation of plant polyamines. In two varieties of wheat that had been stressed by cold t reatment, significant changes were demonstrated in the agmatine conten t of plant seedlings. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserv ed.