The effect of the addition of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) to a buffered mobile phase (pH 3.4) on the retention of nucleotides, nucleosides and bases was investigated with a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) column. Depending on the concentration of SDS, two different trends in the retention of nucleosides and bases containing an $NH_2$ group were observed. If the concentration of SDS was less than 5.5 mM, the retention of compounds containing an $NH_2$ group increased as the concentration of SDS in the mobile phase increased. In contrast, if the concentration was greater than 5.5 mM, the retention of compounds containing an $NH_2$ group decreased. Thus, the SDS acted as an ion-pairing reagent at lower concentration but formed micelles at higher concentrations. The retention behavior of the nucleosides and bases in the presence of a micellar concentration of SDS in the mobile phase on the PVA column was compared to the retention behavior on other types of columns.