The Separation of Salicylate Metabolites By Paper Electrophoresis

The technique of paper electrophoresis was employed to develop a method for the separation of the end-products of salicylate metabolism. A phthalate buffer with a pH of 3.2 and an ionic strength of 0.0125 to 0.05 produced the most satisfactory separation of the metabolites. It was found that the end-products, i.e., salicylic, acetyl salicylic, salicyluric, and gentisic acids, could best be detected by the fluorescent spots they exhibited when the paper strips were viewed under ultraviolet light. The sensitivity of the method was such that as little as one microgram of salicylic acid could be detected as a fluorescent spot after electrophoretic separation