Indian Journal of Animal Nutrition

The fatty acid contents of rohu (Labeo rohita), catla (Catla catla) and mrigal (Cirrhinus mrigala) collected from different geographical locations were determined. They were classed by weight as W₁ (< 50 g), W₂ (51–500 g), W₃ (501–2000 g) and W₄ (>2000 g). For different species (rohu, catla and mrigal), they were further grouped as per fatty acid (FA) profile like RFAW₁, RFAW₂, RFAW₃ and RFAW₄ for rohu, CFAW₁, CFAW₂, CFAW₃ and CFAW₄ for catla and MFAW₁, MFAW₂, MFAW₃ and MFAW₄ for mrigal. The contents of saturated fatty acids (SFA) were higher compared to monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in Indian major carp. Among SFA and MUFA, palmitic and oleic acid were higher. In rohu, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), total ω-3 PUFA, ω-3: ω-6 PUFA ratio and (eicosapentaenoic acid) EPA + DHA were higher (P<0.05) in RFAW₄ group. In catla, oleic acid was higher (P<0.01) in CFAW₁ and CFAW₄ among MUFA. PUFA was higher (P<0.01) in CFAW₂ and CFAW₃ in catla. Among PUFA, EPA, DHA and total ω-3 PUFA and EPA+ DHA were higher (P<0.01) in CFAW₃. In mrigal PUFA and arachidonic acid were significantly (P<0.05) higher in MFAW₃. The total ω-3 PUFA and EPA+DHA contents were significantly (P<0.05) higher in MFAW₄ in mrigal. Results indicated that Indian major carps are rich in PUFA considered to be beneficial for human health.