DIFFERENTIATION OF CULTURED AND WILD STURGEON (ACIPENSER OXYRINCHUS DESOTOI) BASED ON FATTY-ACID COMPOSITION

Sturgeon species have attracted interest for aquaculture due to high v alue of the flesh, caviar and wild stock depletion. Lipid was extracte d from sturgeon muscle using the Bligh and Dyer procedure. Fatty acids from total lipid were methylated using boron-trifluoride in methanol. Fatty acid methyl esters were analyzed by gas chromatography as weigh t %. The fatty acid profiles of lipids were different between cultured and wild sturgeon. Wild sturgeon had higher levels of 16:0, 16:1 omeg a 7, 18:1 omega 9, 22: 4 omega 6 and 22:5 omega 6. Cultured fish had h igher levels of 18:2 omega 6, C20 and C22 monoenes, 20:5 omega 3 and 2 2:6 omega 3. Stepwise discriminant analysis (SDA) was used to develop a mathematical model to distinguish the two populations; the levels of 16:2 omega 6, 22:5 omega 6 and phytanic acid accurately identified th e two fish populations.