Lipid contents and fatty acid composition of total lipid of sea cucumber Stichopus japonicus and konowata (salted sea cucumber entrails)

The fatty acid compositions in the body wall, gonads, and alimentary canal of male and female Stichopus japonicus caught in the Sea of Okhotsk off the coast of Abashiri were analyzed to clarify their characteristics. The fatty acid composition was studied also in konowata sold at the market. The analysis was performed by capillary gas chromatography. Major fatty acids that constituted the lipids of the body wall were iso-C15, C16:0, C16:1n-7, C18:0, C18:1n-7, C20:4n-6, C20:5n-3, C23:1n-9, and C22:6n-3. The fatty acid compositions in various tissues were nearly identical between males and females. Although the fatty acid compositions in the body wall and gonads were similar, they markedly differed from the fatty acid composition in the alimentary canal. The iso-C15, C16:0, and C16:1n-7 levels were very high in the body wall, and the C20:1n-9, C20:4n-6, and C20:5n-3 levels were high in the alimentary canal. A very high monoenoic acid content and the absence of polyunsaturated fatty acids with the exception of icosapentaenoic acid were characteristics of the fatty acid composition in konowata.