Fatty-acid composition of three commercially important fish of the Arabian Gulf

The fatty-acid compositions of Hamour (Epinephelus chlorostigma), Hamrah (Lutjanus campechanus), and Shaour (Lethrinus lentjan) were determined. Fish samples were obtained from the Arabian Gulf each month over a period of one year, and equal numbers of these fish were mixed to yield three pooled samples for analysis, representing a one-year cycle for each fish species. The same fatty acids were found in the muscle tissues (fillet) of the three fish species, with no major differences in the percentages of these acids. The fish species exhibited high degrees of unsaturation (63-68%). The polyunsaturated components constituted almost half of the total fatty acids, and the majority of these belonged to the nutritionally important linolenic and linoleic families. The monoenoic and saturated acids consisted of normal and branched chains and were dominated by C₁₈ and C₁₆ fatty acids.