Accumulation of dietary fish fatty acids in the body fat reserves of some carnivorous fur-bearing animals Kirsti Rouvinen, Jaakko Mäkelä, Tuomo Kiiskinen and Seppo Nummela Rouvinen, K., Mäkelä, J.,Kiiskinen, T. & Nummela, S. 1992. Accumulation ofdietary fish fatty acids in the body fat reserves of some carnivorous fur-bearing animals. Agric. Sei. Finl. I: 483-489. (Agric. Res. Centre of Finland, Fur Farming Res. Sta., SF-69100 Kannus, Finland, Finnish Fur Breeders’ Association, P.0.80x 5, SF-01601 Vantaa, Finland, Agric. Res. Centre of Finland, Inst. Anim. Prod., SF-31600 Jokioinen, Finland and Agric. Res. Centre ofFinland, Centr. Lab., SF-31600 Jokioinen, Finland.) Body fat composition of the mink (Mustela vison), polecat (Mustela putorius), and the raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides) was studied. The animals were fed a wet diet, supplemented with 5 % lard (LA) or fish oil (FO) for 5-6 months. At pelting, five animals per dietary group were sampled. Dietary levels of cetoleic (C22:1 to 11), eico- sapentaenoic (EPA, C20:5<03), and docosahexaenoic (DHA, C22:6c03) acids were 0.4, 0.3, and 0.5% in the fat of the LA diet, and 7.6,4.2 and 4.3% in the FO diet, respectively. In the FO diet, EPA and DHA accumulated especially in the liver and heart, while cetoleic acid showed the highest affinity to the heart muscle and subcutaneous fat. The highest levels of EPA were found in raccoon dogs and polecats fed the FO diet. The mean EPA levels ranged from6.7-9.3% in the liver fat and 7.2-8.0% in the heart muscle fat. In the mink, the corresponding values were 2.7% and 3.9%, respectively. DHA levels were the highest in the liver fat of the polecats, being 18.5% in the FO diet. In addition, the liver in raccoon dogs fed the FO diet (13.8%) differed significantly from the mink (9.4%). The differences in the accumulation of these long-chained marine fatty acids were apparently caused by species differences in the efficiency of their peroxi- somal (1-oxidation. Key words: ferret, mink, polecat, raccoon dog, cetoleic acid, omega-3 fatty acids, liver, heart, subcutaneous fat Introduction In monogastric animals, dietary fat has a strong influence on the fatty acid composition of the tissues and organs. Feeding vegetable oils and fish oils to mink and blue foxes has been shown to increase the levels of linoleic and omega-3 fatty acids, respectively, in the fat depots and the liver of the animals (Rouvinen and Kiiskinen 1989, Skrede and Gulbrandsen 1985, Skrede 1984, Ahman 1965). In blue and silver foxes, feeding an abundance of fish fat is known to cause prominent accumulation of the typical fish fatty acids, i.e. cetoleic (C22: Icol 1), eicosapentaenoic (EPA, C20:5c03) and docosahexaenoic (DHA, C22:6c03) acids, in their subcutaneous fat, liver tissue and 483 Agric. Sei. Fint. 1 (1992) https://www.c-info.fi/en/info/?token=bet-PUiJXaazECS_.9uCZD7kvrmStoNcBwMI_Vg.xRRAOlJiGAaJpMe54EeQycFSqHDWa-bEbS5om-Ao4IssfDsm6djhjJFby4XEOi6uzugPfRDZG1iQNqTNQ85dSaVM6K8eYZ2ZDFJI3dupIuUHzCSZZptzYdX9Q6VGUN3qWjltQ_RRzFiaEJfqk_-0Vnn8YtAlkzLt3_Pk16g0FiDSHFtK2tDsHXayZy8zReVDNbmzJQB0TMtf-RDp6gWfKrd1MwQ5z4UCa25uhCb8eViec0cP7_KijN97Bqw_WIk6whWmjYzuciTOweHOtrFF9Hr978WfYSToejnApJP4FS9Ipzg1bQslyUHfX6PxA6KnU0B9TW4EOtPM_4ny4WefrFDm heart muscle (Rouvinen 1991, Rouvinen 1992). In the rat, feeding fish oil or high erucic acid (C22;1c09) rapeseed oil has been shown to cause lipid infiltration, cell destruction, local inflamma- tory reactions and fibrous scar tissue growth in the heart muscle (Beare-Rogers 1977, Kjnsella 1987). Accumulation of these long-chained fatty acids in body tissues is apparently due to their impaired oxidation. The 20 or 22 carbon atom- chained fatty acids should first be shortened in the peroxisomes to 16 or 18 carbon atom-fatty acids before they can be metabolized by the mitochon- drial p-oxidation (Opstvedt 1984). The present paper reports the effects of feeding lard or fish oil supplemented diets on the body fat composition of some farm-raised carnivorous fur- bearing animals, mink, polecat and the raccoon dog. Material and methods Mink (Mustela vison), polecats (Mustela putorius) and raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) were fed diets based on slaughterhouse offal, fish offal and cereals supplemented either with lard (LA) or fish oil (FO), at 5% in the diet. The animals used were all bora during the spring of 1988, and were raised according to normal fur farming practices at the Veikkola Research Farm of the Finnish Fur Breeders’ Association, Kirkkonummi. The trial lasted from July until pelting during the autumn of 1988. Composition of the experimental diets is presented in Table 1. Feed samples for chemical analysis were taken on August 23rd, and on Sep- tember 30th. Fatty acid composition was analyzed from feed samples taken on November 30th. Five animals per dietary group were electrically executed for sampling on November 30th, 1988. At sampling, the age of the animals was approximately 6-7 months. The mink and polecats were all males, but the raccoon dogs included both sexes, two males and three females per group. The animals were weighed and sampled for liver fat analysis, and samples for fatty acid analysis were taken from Table 1.Composition of experimental diets from weaning to pelting 1988. LA = lard diet, FO = fish oil diet. Diet Ingredient, % LA FO Slaughterhouse offala) 15 15 Fish offal 30 30 Fish meal 1 1 Soybeanmeal 0.5 0.5 Com gluten I 1 Blood meal 1 1 Cereals b) 13 13 Vitamins0* 1.5 1.5 Lard 5 Fish oil - 5 Water 32 32 a) LSO slaughterhouse, Forssa 1,1 cooked cereal: wheat 50 % and barley 50 %. c) 1 kg mixture contains; vitamin A, 500 000 IU; vitamin Ds, 50 000 IU; vitamin C, 6 000 mg; vitamin E, 4 000 mg; vitamin K, 10 mg; vitamin Bi, 1 500 mg; vitamin 82,600 mg; vitamin 812, 1 mg; choline, 2 500 mg; pantothenic acid, 500 mg; nicotinic acid, 1 000 mg; pyridoxin, 400 mg; folic acid, 50 mg; and biotin, 3 mg. therump region of the carcasses (subcutaneous fat), the liver and the heart. The weights of the sampled organs were also taken. The feed, tissue and fat samples were stored at -30°C until analyzed be- tween January 4th and March 13th, 1989. The experimental diets were analyzed for dry matter (DM), ash, Kjeldahl nitrogen and crude fat. The analyses were performed by the Feed Laborat- ory of theFinnish Fur Breeders Association, Vaasa. Fatty acid composition of the diets and the tissue samples were determined in the Central Laboratory of the Agricultural Research Centre ofFinland. The method employed is described in detail by Rou- vinen (1991). The liver fat content was determined by the method of Maxwell et al. (1980) at the laboratory of the Institute of Animal Production, Animal Nutrition Section, Jokioinen. Statistical analysis was performed by the General Linear Models (GLM) procedure of the Statistical Analysis System (SAS 1988). The model used was as follows: 484 Agric. Sei. Fin!. 1 (1992) Yijk n + Sj + Dj + SDjj + Cijk where p is the general mean, Sj is the species effect (/ = 1-3), Dj is the dietary effect (j = 1-2), SD.j represents the species diet interaction and eijk is the error term. Differentiation among the mean values was done by Duncan’s multiple-range test. There were no statistical differences (p>0.05) between sexes in the fatty acid composition of the tissue samples taken from the raccoon dogs, therefore the means given represent pooled data from both sexes. Results Chemical composition of the experimental diets was similar in lard (LA) and fish oil (FO) sup- plemented groups (Table 2). Dietary fat content was high, 27-30% in DM, whichaccounted for approxi- mately 50% of the metabolizable energy in both dietary groups. Dietary fatty acid composition showed a great difference between the lard and fish oil sup- plemented diets (Table 3). The lard diet contained more stearic (C18;0) and oleic (C 18:1co9) acids, but in the fish oil diet the content of cetoleic (C22: Icol 1), eicosapentaenoic (C20:5c03) and do- Table 2. Chemical composition of the diets during the growth period 1988. Diets sampled on Aug. 23rd and Sept. 30th. LA =lard, FO = fish oil, DM = dry matter. Diet August September Analyzed LA FO LA FO DM, % 30.2 30.1 31.2 30.9 In DM, % Ash 7.3 6.6 6.4 7.4 Protein 31.1 33.9 30.8 35.0 Fat 29.1 28.6 30.4 26.9 Carbohydrates10 32.5 30.9 32.4 30.7 a) calculated as difference. cosahexaenoic (C22;6c03) acids was considerably higher. Body weights of the animals and the weights of the liver and the heart did not differ between the dietary treatments. The body weights for the mink, polecats and the raccoon dogs were on average 2249 g, 2055 g, and 8709 g. The average weights of the liver and (heart) were 48.6 g, (10.6 g), 57.9 g, (8.5 g), and 208.7 g (32.7 g) for the mink, polecat and the raccoon dog, respectively. There were no species diet interactions. Clear species differences were found in the liver fat content and body fat composition of the animals (Table 4). Besides higher fat content in the mink livers the variation in the fat content was consider- ably higher for this species. Dietary background of the animals did not affect the liver fat content. The fatty acid composition of the tissue samples strongly reflected the fatty acid profile of the diet- ary fats in all species and in all fat and organ samples studied (Table 4). Furthermore, interesting Table 3. Fatty acid composition of the diets. Determination ofsamples taken on Nov. 30th, 1988. LA = lard diet, FO = fish oil diet. Fatty acids °/n in fat Diet % in fat FOLA C14:0 5.32.5 C 16:0 22.826.1 24.0C18:0 8.6 Saturated Cl6: lto7 C18: lto9 C20:1t09 36.952.9 2.4 5.4 22.633.7 1.0 6.6 C22:1c09+ll 1) 0.4 7.6 Monounsaturated C18:3w3 42.837.7 1.30.8 0.2 1.7C18:4c03 C20:5c03 C22:6<03 Omega-3 C18:2c06 C20:4c06 Omega-6 0.3 4.2 4.30.5 12.31.9 7.1 7.5 0.20.2 8.07.5 11erucic acid (C22:1c09) and cetoleic acid (C22: Icol 1)not separated in the fatty acid analysis. 485 Agric. Sei. Finl. 1 (1992) Table 4. Liver fat content and the content ofcetoleic, eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids in the liver tissue, heart muscle and subcutaneous fat of the mink, polecat and the raccoon dog fed two different diets, LA =lard, FO = fish oil. ND = not detected. Presented are means ± S.D. Fatty acids Mink Polecat Raccoon dog Significance % in fat LA FO LA FO LA FO Species Diet S x D Liver Fat % 13.7 a 11.8 a 7.3 b 5.1 b ±4.4 ±7.0 ±l.O ±0.6 C22:1w9+ll 1) 0.2 d I.oa o.2cd 0.6 b ±O.O ±O.l ±O.O ±O.l C20:5c03 0.4 e 2.7 d 2.2 d 6.7 b ±O.l ±0.9 ±0.4 ±l.l C22:6c03 2.9 d 9.4 c 8.4 c 18.5 a ±0.6 ±2.2 ±1.4 ±0.9 Heart C22:1(09+l 1 0.2 d 2.5 b 0.4 d 1.5c ±O.l ±0.7 ±0.2 ±0.2 C20:5c03 I.lc 3.9 b 2.9 b 7.2 a ±O,l ±1.2 ±0.7 ±0.5 C22:6c03 6.Bbc 7.9 b 7.9 b 11.4a ±0.7 ±1.9 ±1.3 ±l.l Subcutaneous fat C22:1c09+1l 0.3 c 3.2 b 0.2 c 3.5ab ±O.l ±0.6 ±O.l ±0,5 C20:5<03 ND 0.9 b 0.3 c 1.5a ND ±0.3 ±O.O ±0.2 C22:6t03 0.5 d 2.4 c l.Od 4.2 a ±O.l ±l.l ±O,l ±0.5 4.3b 4.9b