Chemical Composition and Elements Concentration of Fillet, Spine and Bones of Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) in Relation to Nutrient Requirements for Minerals

The aim of the study was to compare the content of major components, selected elements and heavy metals in the fillet, spine and bones of a carp (Cyprinus carpio). Moreover, the extent to which a prepared portion of carp tissue (100 g of fillet and 10 g of carp spine or bones) met the requirements for analyzed elements in adults (women and men) and children was calculated. The proximate composition (total protein, total lipid, ash, moisture) and mineral content of the fish samples were determined. The nutrient composition presented fluctuations among the different tissues. Moisture was the main constituent in the fillet and in the spine with 77.8% and 56.0%, respectively, whereas in bones, the main ingredient was ash (36.2%). All carp tissues were good sources of protein, with 16.5%, 21.0% and 17.0% in spine, bones and fillet, respectively. The most abundant main elements were the potassium in the fillet (4005 mg kg-1) and calcium in the bones (116,463 mg kg-1). The most abundant trace elements were iron in fillet and zinc in bones and spine. Carp meat can be considered a safe foodstuff in terms of concentrations of Hg, Pb and Cd, as the levels of these contaminants were less than FAO and European Commission maximum guidelines.

Fatty Acid Indices and the Nutritional Properties of Karakul Sheep Meat

This study aimed to evaluate the fatty acid profile and health lipid indices of sheep meat (from 52 Karakul sheep from NE Romania). The effect of age at slaughter and the influence of muscle region were studied for nutritional parameters, especially the fatty acids from lipid fractions. Based on the fatty acid profiles and lipid contents, the sanogenic indices were determined for two sheep muscle groups. Thus, two different muscle regions from lamb and adult sheep were analysed from both genders, the Longissimus dorsi and Triceps brachii, to argue the advantages of each category and the rationalization, in terms of meat consumption, regarding their impact on human health. Sheep meat has many components with beneficial effects on human health. Apart from the fact that it is an important source of nutrients due to its high content of proteins, lipids, and minerals, it is also a product that can provide fundamental bioactive compounds for maintaining metabolic functions. The qualitative indices assessment revealed that lambs have meat with high PUFA content on Longissimus dorsi muscles (approx. 25% of total fatty acids), 0.68 for PUFA/SFA, with highest values for n-3 (approx. 8%) and n-6 (approx. 14%). Appropriate values can also be observed in Triceps brachii muscles from adult sheep. The sanogenic indices also presented good values for Longissimus dorsi from lambs and Triceps brachii from adult sheep (polyunsaturation index = 7.2-10.2; atherogenic index = 0.56-0.67; thrombogenic index = 0.78-0.96; hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolemic index = 2.4-2.7 (for Longissimus dorsi)).

Fatty Acid-Related Health Lipid Index of Raw and Fried Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) Fish Muscle

Fried food consumption is popular in most parts of the world including Ethiopia. Among many fried products available in Ethiopia, fried fish is most commonly consumed in Hawassa Town due to the easy access to the fish from the lake. Recently, there is growing concern among fryers to recycle the oil while frying fish. However, there is limited evidence about the frying effect on the fatty-acid-related health lipid index of fried fish. Thus, the study was aimed to determine the fatty acid profile and the fatty-acid-related health lipid of raw and fried fish. Raw and fried fish were taken from the Hawassa open fish market. Fatty acid profiles were analyzed using a gas chromatography-mass spectrophotometer (GCMS), and the health lipid index was determined by calculation using the recommended formula. JMP pro 13 version software was used for data analysis. Our result showed that raw fish had a high amount of essential fatty acid, nutritive value index, hypocholesterolemic ratio, and peroxidizability index. In contrary to this, the fried fish had a high amount of trans-fatty acids, nonessential fatty acids, atherogenic index, and thrombogenic index. In conclusion, the fried fish loses its fatty-acid-related nutritional quality in uncontrolled frying conditions. Therefore, frying needs to be controlled, as it risks human health otherwise.

Spiny-Cheek Crayfish, Faxonius limosus (Rafinesque, 1817), as an Alternative Food Source

The aim of the study was to present a comprehensive characterisation of crayfish meat, which is crucial to assess its potential usefulness in the food industry. To this end, we assessed the yield, basic chemical composition (protein, fat, minerals), nutritional value (amino acid and fatty acid profiles, essential amino acid index (EAAI), chemical score of essential amino acids (CS), hypocholesterolaemic/hypercholesterolaemic ratio (h/H), atherogenicity (AI) and thrombogenicity (TI) indices), as well as culinary value (lab colour, texture, sensory characteristics, structure) of the meat of spiny-cheek crayfish (Faxonius limosus) (n = 226) from Lake Sominko (Poland) harvested in May-September 2017. Crayfish meat, especially that from the abdomen, was shown to have high nutritional parameters. It is lean (0.26% of fat), with a favourable fatty acid profile and a very high quality of fat (PUFA (sum of polyunsaturated fatty acids):SFA (sum of saturated fatty acids), n-6/n-3, h/H, AI, TI) and protein (high CS and EAAI). It is also a better source of Ca, K, Mg, Na, P, and Cu than meat from slaughter animals. Hence, crayfish meat can be an alternative to livestock meat in the human diet. Owing to its culinary value (delicateness, weak game flavour, and odour), it meets the requirements of the most demanding consumers, i.e., children and older people.

Fatty acid profiles and health lipid indices in the breast muscles of local Polish goose varieties

The aim of this study was to evaluate the fatty acid profile and health lipid indices of meat from 3 Polish local goose varieties (Romanian–RO, Pomeranian–PO, and Subcarpathian–SB) and the commercial cross White Kołuda goose (W31). Birds were fed ad libitum with the same complete feeds until 17 wk of age. The geese (n = 72) with body weight close to the arithmetic mean in particular flock were fasted for 12 h and slaughtered in an experimental slaughterhouse (18 females in each flock). Carcasses were stored at 2 to 4°C for 24 h. The breast muscles (m. pectoralis major) were cut out from the left side of carcass, separately vacuum-packed, and stored at −80°C until analysis. Fatty acid profile of meat was determined by gas chromatography and health lipid indices were calculated. The W31 muscles had a higher percentage of C 18:0 and a lower of C 16:0 than those of RO, PO, and SB geese. The W31 muscles were characterized by a significantly higher proportion of monounsaturated fatty acids (46.5%) than remaining ones (43.28%–PO, 43.38%–SB, and 44.24%–RO). The lowest proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids was established for W31 muscles (22.05%). The breast muscles of RO, SB, and PO had more favorable polyunsaturated n-6 and n-3 fatty acid (PUFA)/ saturated fatty acid (SFA) ratio (0.85, 0.82, 0.83, respectively) than W31 geese (0.72). The current findings showed that UFA/SFA, PUFA/SFA, and PUFA n-6/n-3 ratios in RO and SB muscles were within the optimum values for human diets. No significant differences were observed in the atherogenic, thrombogenic, and hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolemic indices between the analyzed muscles. Commercial W31 geese breast muscles showed a lower value (43.90%) of peroxidizability index (PI) compared to SB (52.88%), PO (53.93%), and RO (53.47%). However, the higher values of the PUFA/SFA and PI in the meat of SB, PO, and RO birds may indicate a higher prohealth value of their meat.