Abstract

Bioactive peptides derived from food proteins have important biological effects. The search for new bioactive peptides from natural sources needs to base their decisions on evidence from methods providing structural information, where classic biological assays do not provide it. In this context, high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) coupled with bioassays in effect-directed analysis (EDA) has been used recently to detect the bioactivities of peptides. In EDA, peptides are separated and the biological effects of individual fractions can be determined. HPTLC-EDA coupled with MS represents an emerging technology, complementary to the more common HPLC and electrophoresis analytical methods used for peptide analysis. In addition, thin-layer chromatography (TLC) can be used to identify the origins of substances causing biological effects. This review provides an overview of the status of analytical methods in these systems as well as new strategies for the detection and characterization of bioactive peptides.