Fatty acid composition of the Barents Sea red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) leg meat

Abstract

The information on fatty acid profiles in different tissues of the Barents Sea red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) is scarce and fragmentary. For this reason, leg meat of red king crabs collected at a coastal site of the Barents Sea in summer was analyzed for fatty acid composition by gas chromatography. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) dominated among fatty acids assayed (1623 μg·g–1, 55.2 %), saturated fatty acids (SFA) accounted for 790 μg·g–1 or 27.6 % and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) – 519 μg·g–1 or 17.28 %. Concentrations of fatty acids were similar in red king crabs regardless of size group, shell condition, limb injury status or sex (with some exceptions). The meat of red king crabs from the Barents Sea contains higher percentages of SFA and PUFA and lower percentages of MUFA than the meat of the crabs from native regions and the percent value of arachidonic acid was 14 times higher than in Alaskan red king crabs. High concentrations of essential eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids in the Barents Sea red king crab meat and an n-3/n-6 ratio close to the recommended value characterize this product as important for human food.