RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN FATTY-ACIDS AND MAI N COMPONENTS OF GOAT MILK

In milk from 20 goats of the White Polled Short-woolled breed the perc entages of fatty acids were investigated chromatographically (Gajdusek et al., 1993) while the content of fat, proteins and lactose was dete rmined spectrophotometrically on a Multispek apparatus, in 10 time int ervals during the first lactation (days 1 to 255). The results od anal yses of fatty acids (FA) were used to calculate the total contents of saturated (C8:0 + C9:0 + C10:0 + C12:0 + C14:0 + C16:0 + C18:0) and un saturated (C16:1 + C18:1 + C18:2 + C18:3) major fatty acids, the conte nt of minor fatty acids (with average content below 1%) and content of polyenic acids (C18:2 + C18:3) were summed up. Regression equations o f straight lines were calculated between the particular values. Signif icance of correlation coefficients was tested by t-test. A total of 39 significant correlation coefficients of straight lines was determined for the contents of major FA. Some significant relationships were alr eady published previously (Brendehaug, Abrahamsen, 1986; Grandpierre e t al., 1998), but it is apparent from the results that the group of ma jor FA C8:0 to C16:0 shows positive relationships; the same applies to the group of FA C16:1 to C18:3. All significant relationships between the fatty acids of both groups are negative. For better illustration, Tab. I shows the positive significant correlation coefficients on the left side, while the negative significant correlation coefficients ar e indicated on the right. Tab. II shows variability of the content of main components of milk and of the calculated groups of saturated, uns aturated, minor and polyenic FA. Intensive linear relationship was dem onstrated to exist between the main components of milk (set 1) and the groups of major fatty acids (set 2) (canonical correlation coefficien t r(u1v1) = 0.5024). That is why correlation coefficients of straight lines were also calculated for these parameters. Tab. III shows statis tically significant correlation coefficients. For better illustration, positive correlation coefficients are given on the left side while th e negative ones are on the right. Highly significant relationships wer e determined for the contents of fat, protein and lactose, and the con tents of saturated and/or unsaturated FA. Their negativeness and/or po sitiveness is related to the clear highly significant negative relatio nship between the total contents of major saturated and unsaturated FA . Significant negative relationships were found out between the total contents of saturated and minor, and minor and polyenic FA. There was also a highly significant positive relationship between the content of fat and proteins in goat milk.