Determination of Seasonal Changes in the Fat and Fatty Acid Profiles of Saurida lessepsianus (Russell, Golani and Tikochinski, 2015) Caught from Mersin Bay

In this study, seasonal changes in the lipid and fatty acid profiles of S. lessepsianus caught from the Mersin Bay were investigated. The total lipid levels of S. lessepsianus were found to be 2.94%, 7.19%, 2.45%, 0.83%, in spring, summer, autumn and winter season, respectively. Major fatty acids in S. lessepsianus were palmitic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, palmitoleic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in all seasons. The highest values of palmitic, palmitoleic and EPA were determined as 22.97%, 3.80% and 4.22% in spring, respectively. The highest values of stearic and oleic acid were determined as 15.93% and 7.84% in autumn, respectively. The highest value of DHA were also determined as 31.91% in winter season. The EPA level from polyunsaturated fatty acids was found in the range of 2.54-4.22% (23.09-195.62 mg/100g). The highest level of DHA were observed in the winter season and its levels changed in the range of 19.83-31.81% and was calculated as 201.29-1301.73 mg/100g. In addition, the highest level of the Σn3, Σn6, and Σn9 were calculated in the summer season as 1516.39, 114.88, 399.77 mg/100g, respectively. This report showed that fat and fatty acid profiles of S. lessepsianus are quite influenced by seasonal factors.