Chromatographic analysis of tocol-derived lipid antioxidants

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of existing chromatographic me thods for the analysis of tocol-derived lipid antioxidants in various sampl e matrices. After a brief introductory discussion on biological and nutriti onal aspects of the vitamin E active compounds, the review focuses on vario us techniques for the isolation, purification, chromatographic separation, and detection of tocopherols and tocotrienols. Compiled published normal-ph ase (NP) and reversed-phase (RP) high-performance liquid chromatographic (H PLC) methods demonstrate general trends and analytical variability and vers atility of HPLC methodology. The relative merits of the two HPLC methods ar e assessed. NP and RP elution characteristics are delineated to aid in the identification of antioxidant components. Technical novelty of certain anal ytical procedures for non-food samples warrants their inclusion in this rev iew in light of the potential applicability in food assays. (C) 2000 Publis hed by Elsevier Science B.V.