Intramuscular fat and fatty acid profile of muscle of lambs finished in irrigated pasture

Abstract

The aim of this research was to study the differences between breeds through the analyses of the intramuscular fat content and fatty acid profile of the main local hair sheep breeds of Brazil, Morada Nova (MO), Brazilian Somali (SO) and Santa Inês (SI) and the crossbred Dorper× Morada Nova (F1). Genetic group was a significant source of variation for intramuscular fat content, individual fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)/saturated fatty acid (SFA) ratio, total PUFA, essential fatty acids (EFA), total n-3 and n-6 PUFA and Δ9 desaturase and atherogenic index. MO breed presented the highest values of conjugated linoleic acid, PUFA (similar to F1) and PUFA/SFA (similar to F1). MO meat had the highest proportion of EFA, despite the value was similar to F1. SO breed showed highest proportion of myristc, pentadecanoic, palmitic and palmitoleic acids in muscle, and highest Δ9 desaturase indices. In conclusion, there are differences between genetic group for the profile of fatty acids and intramuscular fat. The meat from MO lambs had better attributes of fatty acid composition with higher PUFA, PUFA/SFA ratio, EFA and total n-3 PUFA. © 2013 © 2013 Taylor & Francis.