Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption

Embryos of marine organisms are used for human consumption. However, potential health benefits of crab embryos remain largely undressed. Cancer pagurus is the most consumed crab species in Europe, with the tight packing of embryos within the brooding chamber of females eventually affecting their nut...

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Main Authors: Simão Maia, Felisa Rey, M. Rosário Domingues, Joana Figueira, Sam Dupont, Sérgio M. Leandro, Ricardo Calado
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Applied Food Research
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772502225000836
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author Simão Maia
Felisa Rey
M. Rosário Domingues
Joana Figueira
Sam Dupont
Sérgio M. Leandro
Ricardo Calado
author_facet Simão Maia
Felisa Rey
M. Rosário Domingues
Joana Figueira
Sam Dupont
Sérgio M. Leandro
Ricardo Calado
author_sort Simão Maia
collection DOAJ
description Embryos of marine organisms are used for human consumption. However, potential health benefits of crab embryos remain largely undressed. Cancer pagurus is the most consumed crab species in Europe, with the tight packing of embryos within the brooding chamber of females eventually affecting their nutritional value. This study showed that newly extruded embryos were rich in 20:5 n-3 (11.78 ± 3.36 µg mg-1 DW) and 22:6 n-3 (11.50 ± 3.29 µg mg-1 DW), exhibited a balanced Σ n-6/Σ n-3 ratio (0.25 ± 0.06) and suitable nutritional lipid indices for human diet, namely atherogenic index (0.34 ± 0.05), thrombogenic index (0.19 ± 0.04) and hypocholesterolemic /hypercholesterolemic index (2.80 ± 0.44). Moreover, the position of C. pagurus embryos within females’ brooding chamber did not influence their fatty acid (FA) profile or nutritional quality. Regardless of their position in the brooding chamber, newly extruded embryos displayed a similar FA profile, evidencing a uniform maternal investment in offspring. These findings highlight the potential of C. pagurus embryos as a functional gourmet seafood, which may enhance their market value.
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publishDate 2025-06-01
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spelling doaj-art-b067f9d8023449579f61c5e8758c2f2f2025-08-20T03:20:13ZengElsevierApplied Food Research2772-50222025-06-015110077310.1016/j.afres.2025.100773Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumptionSimão Maia0Felisa Rey1M. Rosário Domingues2Joana Figueira3Sam Dupont4Sérgio M. Leandro5Ricardo Calado6CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Politécnico de Leiria, ESTM, 2520-630 Peniche, PortugalCESAM & Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; Mass Spectrometry Centre & LAQV-REQUIMTE, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; Corresponding authors.CESAM & Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; Mass Spectrometry Centre & LAQV-REQUIMTE, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, PortugalMARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Politécnico de Leiria, ESTM, 2520-630 Peniche, PortugalDepartment of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Kristineberg 566-45178 Fiskebäckskil, SwedenMARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Politécnico de Leiria, ESTM, 2520-630 Peniche, PortugalCESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; Corresponding authors.Embryos of marine organisms are used for human consumption. However, potential health benefits of crab embryos remain largely undressed. Cancer pagurus is the most consumed crab species in Europe, with the tight packing of embryos within the brooding chamber of females eventually affecting their nutritional value. This study showed that newly extruded embryos were rich in 20:5 n-3 (11.78 ± 3.36 µg mg-1 DW) and 22:6 n-3 (11.50 ± 3.29 µg mg-1 DW), exhibited a balanced Σ n-6/Σ n-3 ratio (0.25 ± 0.06) and suitable nutritional lipid indices for human diet, namely atherogenic index (0.34 ± 0.05), thrombogenic index (0.19 ± 0.04) and hypocholesterolemic /hypercholesterolemic index (2.80 ± 0.44). Moreover, the position of C. pagurus embryos within females’ brooding chamber did not influence their fatty acid (FA) profile or nutritional quality. Regardless of their position in the brooding chamber, newly extruded embryos displayed a similar FA profile, evidencing a uniform maternal investment in offspring. These findings highlight the potential of C. pagurus embryos as a functional gourmet seafood, which may enhance their market value.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772502225000836CrustaceansBrachyuraNutritional valueDHAOmega-3 PUFA
spellingShingle Simão Maia
Felisa Rey
M. Rosário Domingues
Joana Figueira
Sam Dupont
Sérgio M. Leandro
Ricardo Calado
Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
Applied Food Research
Crustaceans
Brachyura
Nutritional value
DHA
Omega-3 PUFA
title Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
title_full Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
title_fullStr Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
title_full_unstemmed Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
title_short Fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab (Cancer pagurus) and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
title_sort fatty acid profile of newly extruded embryos of brown crab cancer pagurus and potential value of their lipids for human consumption
topic Crustaceans
Brachyura
Nutritional value
DHA
Omega-3 PUFA
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772502225000836
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