Chromatographic appraisal of fatty acid profile in camel’s milk at different temperatures

Abstract

Milk is an important component of humans’ diet. Milk fats provide the essential fatty acids important for health and normal growth of the body. The aim of the study was to determine the fatty acid profile of camel’s milk through gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) at different temperatures i.e. 4○C, 7○C, and 16○C. A total of 18 milk samples were obtained from lactating local camels available in Peshawar, Pakistan. The results demonstrated a higher proportion of saturated fatty acids (SFA) than unsaturated fatty acids (USFA) in milk samples. The predominant fatty acids were Palmitic acid (C16:0), Myristic acid (C14:0) and Stearic acid (C18:0), where they were 48.86%, 23.5% and 15.26% of the total fatty acids in milk respectively. The SFA were dominated by Myristic acid (C14:0) and Palmitic acid (C16:0) and the major monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) were Heptadecenoic (C17:1) and Eicosanoic acid (C20:1) and the major polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) was Linoleic acid (C18:2c). The Medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA) which was represented by Lauric acid (C12:0) only was 1.51% in milk. The current study further elucidated differential expression of diverse fats with temperature changes. The statistical analysis showed that Myristic acid (C14:0), Pentadecanoic acid (C15:0), Palmitoleic acid C16:1c, Stearic acid (C18:0), and Linoleic acid (C18:2c) varied significantly (p<0.05) in response to change in temperature.