High-resolution analysis of catechol-type siderophores using polyamide thin layer chromatography

The iron-deficient culture supernatant of a soil bacterial strain identified as Erwinia sp. was analyzed using a new high-resolution polyamide thin layer chromatography (TLC) and a silica TLC. The results showed both TLC methods were very effective for separating simple catechol compounds such as 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic acid (2,3-DHBA) and catechol. However, in the analysis of more complicated catechol compounds or true catechol-type siderophores (conjugates of 2,3-DHBA and amino acids), the polyamide TLC had the higher resolution. Polyamide TLC analysis showed that strain S1 produced three distinct catechol-type siderophores.