Fatty Acid Compositions and Heavy Metals in Marine Fish Samples of Banglades

Abstract

This study investigated the fatty acid compositions, moisture content, ash content and heavy metals in ten marine fish samples namely, Lates calcarifer, Tenualosa toli, Pampus chinensis, Laptoracanthus savala, Harpodon nehereus, Johnius angentatus, Awaous guamensis, Setipinna phasa, Sillogenopsis panigus, Sardina pilchardus collected from Kuakata sea beach, Bangladesh. Analysis was carried out according to AOAC (1990) method. Fatty acid compositions were determined by saponification and esterification followed by identification and quantitation by gas chromatograph equipped with flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Ash, fat and moisture contents of the fish samples were in the range of 3.25-6.27%, 0.89-6.08% and 71.47-90.16%, respectively. The amount of saturated fatty acids (SFA) varied in the range of 55.53-89.04% whereas unsaturated fatty acids (USFA) were of 16.45-44.48%. Lauric (3.93-15.19%), palmitic (40.27-67.34%) and stearic acids (5.18-22.88%) were predominant among the individual SFA compositions, whereas oleic (0.91-34.26%), linoleic (0.69-9.95%) and palmitoleic acids (7.66-19.05%) were predominant among USFA in these species. Samples were freeze dried, digested and finally analysed by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) for the presence of Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn and the range of these metals were 0.5-1.9, 2.4-30.4, 3.2-10.5, 0.3-8.5 mg.kg-1, respectively. However, the values were below the permitted level set by FAO/WHO 2004.