Fatty acid composition of muscle and adipose tissue of indigenous Polish geese breeds

Abstract. The aim of the study was to compare the fatty acid profile in lipids of breast and leg muscles as well as in adipose tissue of 24-week-old Rypińska (n=20) and Garbonosa (n=20) geese from unique indigenous conservation flocks, maintained using the in situ method at the Research Station of Waterfowl Genetic Resources in Dworzyska, belonging to the National Research Institute of Animal Production in Krakow, Poland. The geese from both flocks were fed ad libitum by the same complete feed: until the 6th week of age which contained: 19.0 % crude protein, 4.0 % crude fat, 3.5 % fibre and up to 12.0 MJ metabolisable energy, and later – from the 7th to the 24th week of age up to 17.0 % crude protein, 3.0 % crude fat, 5.0 % crude fibre and 11.3 MJ metabolisable energy per 1.0 kg of feed.

On the basis of carried experiment it was stated, that the lipids of breast muscles of Garbonosa geese contained less saturated fatty acids (SFAs) (without C 14:0) and more the C 20:4 n-6 (6.96 % vs. 6.36 %), C 20:5 n-3 – eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) (1.16 % vs. 1.10 %), C 22:4 n-6 (0.69 % vs. 0.64 %) and C 22:6 n-3 – docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) (0.44 % vs. 0.38 %) than in Rypińska, whereas in lipids of leg muscles of Rypińska there was a higher level of C 14:0 (0.53 % vs. 0.50 %), C 18:1 cis-9 (37.64 % vs. 37.33 %), C 18:2 n-6 (16.26 % vs. 15.97 %) and α C 18:3 n-3 (0.83 % vs. 0.80 %) and lower of C 20:4 n-6 (7.63 % vs. 7.79 %) as well as C 20:5 n-3 – EPA (1.49 % vs 1.51 %) compared to the Garbonosa geese flock. The higher concentration of C 14:0, C 16:0, C 16:1 trans-9, α C 18:3 n-3, and lower concentration (P≤0.01) of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in both flocks was found out in lipids of breast than leg muscles. The adipose tissue of Rypińska was characterised by higher (P≤0.01) content of C 14:0 (by 0.12 %), C 16:0 (by 1.75 %), C 16:1 cis-9 (by 0.78 %) and lower (P≤0.01) content of C 18:1 cis -9 (by 2.8 %), C 18:2 n-6 (by 1.48 %) and C 20:4 n-6 (by 0.19 %) compared to Garbonosa geese.