Determination of fatty acids from phospholipid subclasses in the total body and cephalopedal tissues from edible snail Helix lucorum

Objective: The objective of the study was to examine the nutritive value of Helix lucorum meat and to create awareness about fatty acid composition of phospholipid subclasses of the total body and cephalopedal tissues of the snail. Methods: Thin layer chromatography plates contained lipid samples placed in the chromatography tank containing: chloroform/ethanol/water/triethylamine. The phospholipid subclasses were dissolved in about 5 ml of methanol and 5 drop of sulfuric acid. The mixture was refluxed for 2 h to form fatty acid methyl esters at 85 degrees C. Fatty acids were detected by Gas chromatography. Results: The most noteworthy result was the high level of C20:2 omega 6 in PE (10.49%-11.35%) and PC (17.33%-12.96%). Appreciable quantity of essential fatty acid C18:2 omega 6 was determined in PC (20.85%-17.46%) and PE (16.88%-17.53%) from both tissues. Precursor of eicosanoids, C20:4 omega 6 was found apparently high in PI, PS and PE of the total body. The highest level of SPUFA was 63.90% in PE from total body whereas the highest level of SSFA was 60.79% in PI from the cephalopedal. SMUFA level was pretty low in PI, PS and PE. Conclusion: The study is a guide for biochemical and nutritional value of edible snails and can be useful for further investigation on physiological and systematic studies of other species.