Thin-Layer Chromatographic Method for Assaying Polyamines

The naturally occurring polyamines putrescine, spermidine, and spermine are found in all tissues and microorganisms (1 –5 ). Polyamines are cations that have been implicated in various growth processes and in cellular differentiation (6 ). This chapter describes a simple and rapid method for the assay of polyamines. The method described here is based on that of Seiler (7 ) and enables one to determine 10–100 pmol of polyamines.