LIPID-CONTENT AND FATTY-ACID COMPOSITION OF TEA SHOOT AND MANUFACTURED TEA

The contents of neutral lipid (NL), glycolipid (GL), and phospholipid (PL) and their fatty acid (FA) compositions in fresh and processed leaves of tea varieties at four stages of black tea manufacture were analyzed. Well-marked variation in FA compositions in different lipid contents of the three genotypes as well as in different manufacturing stages were shown. Glycolipid, which accounts for about 60% of the total lipids, contains a significantly higher amount of linolenic acid, which undergoes pronounced degradation during different stages of black tea manufacture. Palmitic (C16:0), oleic (C18:1), linoleic (C18:2), and linolenic (C18:3) acids were found in considerably higher quantity than other FAs irrespective of cultivars. Palmitic acid occurred in higher proportion in PL, while myristic acid (C14:0) and lauric acid (C12:0) were abundant in NL. The quantity of major FA constituents of the GL fraction in curl, tear, and crush (CTC) black tea was higher than that in orthodox black tea.