Original research article A comparative analysis of lipid content and fatty acid composition in muscle, liver and gonads of Seriola fasciata Bloch 1793 based on gender and maturation stage Natacha Nogueira a, *, Igor Fernandes b , Tomásia Fernandes b , Nereida Cordeiro b a Mariculture Center of Calheta, Vila da Calheta, 9370-133 Calheta, Madeira, Portugal b University of Madeira, Faculty of Exact Sciences and Engineering, 9000-390 Funchal, Madeira, Portugal A R T I C L E I N F O Article history: Received 28 June 2016 Received in revised form 24 October 2016 Accepted 10 November 2016 Available online 13 November 2016 Keywords: Food analysis Seriola fasciata Lesser amberjack Maturation stage Gender Lipid content Fatty acid profile Food composition Nutritional values A B S T R A C T The fat content and fatty acid profile of commercially important Seriola fasciata (Lesser amberjack) was determined in samples of muscle, liver and gonads of both genders at pre-spawning and spawning stage. Results indicated that edible muscle of pre-spawning fish had high fat content (>8%), lowering to medium fat (4–8%) content during spawning stage. Livers and gonads presented more constant and relatively high lipid contents. Saturated fatty acids constituted the majority of the fatty acids, followed by monounsaturated fatty acids, with palmitic acid and oleic acid as the major fatty acid in all tissues. EPA and DHA content increased in spawning females and highest amounts were observed in the ovaries (222 and 1440 mg/100 g respectively). Livers presented lowest PUFAs content regardless of maturity stage and Sn6/Sn3 ratio was influenced by gender in this organ. Sn3/Sn6 was gender related during pre-spawning stage, increasing in spawning maturation stage. Results highlight variations in the nutritional value of the different tissues according to maturity stage and gender, emphasizing the need for consumer awareness of these changes. © 2016 Published by Elsevier Inc. 1. Introduction Foods from the aquatic environment are a complete and unique source of both macro- and micronutrients required in a healthy diet. Fatty acids (FAs), especially the ones in fish lipids, are very important nutritional elements for human health and have been associated with the prevention of several diseases (Simopoulos, 2000). Although their content is species specific, from a human consumption perspective, the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) composition in fish strongly determines their nutritional quality, since fish are key in supplying n3 PUFAs (Steffens, 1997). In particular, n3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n3) display several properties beneficial for human health (Prato and Biandolino, 2012) and have been linked to the prevention of cardiovascular diseases (Sidhu, 2003) and cancers, reduction of the risk of coronary heart disease, decreasing of mild hypertension, lowering the incidence of diabetes and possible alleviation of the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (Simopoulos, 2002). Still, actual dietary intakes in the western diet tends to be too low in n3 fatty acids, mainly due to the low consumption of seafood and a lack of adequate information for consumers regarding the nutritional value of these foodstuffs (Prato and Biandolino, 2012). The total lipid and fatty acid composition of fish in different tissues varies according to several parameters, such as fishing season, geographical location, size, sex, and reproductive cycle period (Luzia et al., 2003). While some fish (e.g., salmon, trout and herring) store FAs predominantly in muscle tissues, lean fish accumulate the FAs in body cavities and perivisceral organs (e.g., liver and gonads) (Guil-Guerrero et al., 2011). Still, the liver and gonads are usually discarded when fish are prepared for human consumption, thus wasting a potential source of PUFAs. Knowing that there is a growing demand for PUFAs, the characterization of suitable new sources from discarded by-products would be desirable (Jayasinghe et al., 2003), not only for increasing the profitability of the by-products of the fishing industry, but also for the possibility of finding PUFA-oils with higher quality than traditional ones. Of the nine valid Seriola species that occur worldwide, greater amberjack (S. dumerilli) is the most commercialized because it is distributed worldwide, offers excellent flesh quality, high market price and high growth rates in the wild and in captivity (Jerez et al., * Corresponding author. E-mail address: natachacnogueira@gmail.pt (N. Nogueira). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2016.11.005 0889-1575/© 2016 Published by Elsevier Inc. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 59 (2017) 68–73 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Food Composition and Analysis journa l homepage: www.e lsevier.com/locate/jf ca