Studio analitico della componente lipidica della bottarga di muggine, in Ingredienti Alimentari

Sardinia has a long tradition in making a high quality mullet bottarga (Mugil cephalus). Sardinian bottarga is the final product of a number of treatments (basically salting and drying) conducted on the ovaries of mullet. In this work main lipid classes, fatty acids and fatty alcohols compositions, and oxidative status of commercial samples of grated bottarga produced in Sardinia were studied by using different analytical techniques (GC, HPLC and 13C NMR). Wax esters resulted the main lipid fraction (>50 mol%), whereas triacylglycerols and phospholipids, cholesterol and cholesteryl-esters represented a minor fraction, with concentrations of free fatty acids in the range 15-29 mol%. The most represented fatty alcohols were 14:0, 16:0, 16:1 n-7 e 18:0, among fatty acids the most represented were 16:0, 18:0, 16:1 n-7, 18:1 n-9, 20:5 n-3 (EPA, 10-13 mg/g of the edible portion) and 22:6 n-3 (DHA, 20-29 mg/g). The oxidation status was measured by detection of conjugated dienes fatty acids hydroperoxides (0.25-0.4 nmol/ mg of lipid).