Comparative study of the fatty acid composition of light/dark mixture musculature of five freshwater fish from the region of Dezful, Iran

Abstract

Fatty acid composition of fish is one of the key factors for the evaluation of fish nutritional value and it could be different based on fish species, habitat, nutrition and etc. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the fatty acid composition of five commercially important freshwater fish species taken from fisheries sites at Dez River, Iran. The fish samples included Heckel’s Orontes barbell, Luciobarbus pectoralis (Heckel, 1843), Chub, Squalius cephalus (Linnaeus, 1758), Common carp, Cyprinus carpio (Linnaeus, 1758), Brond-snout, Chondrostoma regium (Heckel, 1843) and Longspine scraper, Capoeta trutta (Heckel, 1843). The determination of fatty acid contents of the fish fillets were conducted by means of Gas chromatography. Results showed that Luciobarbus pectoralis fillets had the highest amount of fatty acids (43.49%). Cyprinus carpio had the highest amount of saturated fat (SAF) (29.43%) whereas the Luciobarbus pectoralis fillets had the highest MUFA (Monounsaturated fatty acid) (18.51%). The Squalius cephalus fillets possessed the highest amount of PUFA (polyunsaturated fatty acid) (1.87%). The Chondrostoma regium fillets revealed the highest n-6 (1.1%) while the Squalius cephalus fillets had the highest omega 3 (1.87%). The results of the present study showed that these freshwater fish are good sources of n-3 fatty acids, especially EPA and DHA, and could be considered as a valuable nutritional source.