PaPer Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 131 - Keywords: Karayaka sheep, fatty acid composition, lambs, meat quality, slaughter weight - Meat production traits of local KarayaKa sheep in turKey 1. the Meat quality characteristic of laMbs y. aKsoy1* and Z. ulutaş2 1Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Osmangazi University, Eskişehir, Turkey 2Department of Animal Production and Technology, Faculty of Agricultural Science and Technology, Niğde University, Nigde, Turkey *Corresponding author: yaksoy@ogu.edu.tr AbstrAct this study is an investigation into the meat quality parameters of Karayaka lambs at different slaughter weights (sWs). the single-born Karayaka male lambs (n=30) selected for this study were an average live-weight of 20 kg and weaned at 2.5-3 months of age. the animals with pre-spec- ified sWs were divided into slaughter weight (sW) groups (30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 kg) using a ful- ly randomized design. to determine the M. longissimus dorsi et thoracis (LD) muscle meat qual- ity characteristics, six lambs from each weight group were slaughtered. results revealed signif- icant differences among the slaughter groups with regard to pH, color parameters (L*-lightness, a*-redness, b* -yellowness), cooking loss (cL), drip loss (DL), moisture (M), crude protein (cP) and intramuscular fat (IF) ratios. Increasing water holding capacities (WHcs) and hardness values were observed with increasing sW. significant differences were also observed among the slaugh- ter groups with regard to total monounsaturated fatty acid + total polyunsaturated fatty acid/to- tal saturated fatty acid ratios and total cholesterol content. mailto:yaksoy%40ogu.edu.tr?subject= 132 Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 IntroDuctIon Mutton is a significant protein source for humans. Although turkey is among those countries with rapidly increasing popula- tion, there has been an approximately 48% decrease in the country’s sheep stocks in re- cent decades. According to the latest sta- tistics, around 13.7% of turkish red meat production comes from sheep-raising (tuIK, 2014). such a ratio clearly indicates the sig- nificance of mutton in red meat production of turkey. to meet animal protein require- ments, and to provide a healthy and balanced nutrition, especially for children, but also for all ages, the quality and amount of red meat per unit animal definitely requires improve- ment. the link between beef, mutton and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease has repeatedly been the focus of concern (WooD et al., 1999; nuErnbErG et al., 2008). beef and mutton are regarded as having a higher saturated fatty acid content and cholester - ol level than other red meat and poultry (KA- rAcA and Kor, 2007). However, conjugate li- noleic acid, a derivative of linoleic acid of un- saturated fatty acids, has anti-carcinogen- ic and beneficial effects on human health, such as decreasing body fatty acids and im- proving immunity. Previous research has re- vealed that lamb has higher rates of this fatty acid than other meat sources (InAnÇ, 2006; KurbAn and MEHMEtoĞLu, 2006). Along with ever developing and changing consumer de- mand, there is a need for studies about fatty acids and the cholesterol contents of muttons of local sheep breeds and such studies will unquestionably provide a great contribution to the preservation of local breeds and gene source. In lambs, meat quality is significantly affected by genotypes (EsEnbuĞA et al., 2001; PurcHAs et al., 2002; MAr tÍnEZ-cErEZo et al., 2005), slaughter weights (sWs) (JErEMIAH et al., 1998; PurcHAs et al., 2002; MAr tÍn- EZ-cErEZo et al., 2005), gender (DrAnsFIELD et al., 1990), pre-slaughter stress (tEIXEIrA et al., 2005), carcass cooling ratio (tEIXEIrA et al., 2005), raising system (VELAsco et al., 2004; cArrAsco et al., 2009) and maturation duration (tEIXEIrA et al., 2005). Karayaka sheep have low fertility (52-103%) (AKÇAPInAr et al., 2002; AKsoY, 2008), milk production (40-45 kg) and live weight (35-50 kg) (sÖnMEZ et al., 2009), while the quality of meat traits is better than that of other local breeds such as red Karaman, Anatolian Me- rino and Awassi. Karayaka sheep constitute about 4-5% of the total turkish sheep popu- lation and are extensively reared in the black sea region of turkey (uLutAs et al., 2008). the present study was conducted to deter- mine the meat quality traits of Karayaka lambs with different sWs. MAtErIAL AnD MEtHoDs the present research was conducted in the sheep barns of the Agricultural research Farm of Gaziosmanpaşa university (2011-HADYEK-046 numbered local ethics committee approval). sin- gleton-born Karayaka male lambs (n = 30) with an average live-weight of 20 kg and weaned at 2.5-3 months of age were considered for the study. the sWs and age of lambs at slaugh- ter were 30 kg and 104.8±4.83 days; 35 kg and 119.2±4.29 days; 40 kg and 135.8±1.87 days; 45 kg and 154.6±1.99 days; 50 kg and 163.6±3.26 days, respectively. the animals with pre-speci- fied sWs were divided into sW groups in a ful- ly randomized design. Lambs housed together in 5 × 8 meter pens. before the initiation of fat- tening, the lambs were disinfected against in- ternal and external parasites. Following an ini- tial one-week feeding adaptation period, the ac- tual fattening was commenced and lambs were fed until they reach sWs of 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 kg. six lambs were slaughtered from each weight group. Lamb fattening feed (concentrated feed) and lentil straw (coarse fodder) were used as the feed material. During the fattening peri- od, lamb-fattening feed was supplied ad libitum and coarse fodder was supplied at a ratio of 100 g/head/day. the nutrient contents of the con- centrated feed and coarse fodder are provided in table 1. Fresh water and licking stones were continuously supplied to animals during the ex- periments. the lambs with the desired sWs were taken into private pens. the animals were not fed for 12 hours prior to slaughter; they were then were transported for 10 minutes to a local licensed abattoir. After holding them in the pad- dock of the slaughterhouse for two hours, they were slaughtered following the standard com- mercial slaughter procedures (tsI, 1987). the lambs were brought to slaughter within ±1 kg of the expected sWs. After slaughter, the carcasses were kept at +4°c for 24 h and then the M. longis- simus dorsi et thoracis (LD) muscles were isolat- ed for meat quality analyses. sufficient samples taken from these muscles were vacuumed and stored at +4 °c for analysis, at -20 °c for mois- table 1 - the chemical composition of concentrated feed and coarse fodder. Nutrient content Concentrated feed Lentil straw Dry matter (%) 92.00 91.30 Crude protein (%) 20.63 5.78 ADF (%) 26.39 55.59 NDF (%) 37.96 56.29 Crude fat (%) 2.60 1.49 Crude ash (%) 10.40 9.60 Metabolic energy (kcal/kg) 2658 2012 ADF:Acid Detergent Fiber NDF:Neutral Detergent Fiber Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 133 ture (M), crude ash (cA), crude protein (cP), in- tramuscular fat (IF) and at -80 °c for defrosting and cooking loss (cL), texture, fatty acid compo- sition and cholesterol analyses. the pH of the LD muscle samples was measured at the 45th min- ute and 24th hour after slaughter with a meat pH meter (testo 205, Germany). Measurements were taken from three different locations of the samples and an average of those three measure- ments was taken as the pH value of that sam- ple (rAMÍrEZ and cAVA, 2007). Meat color measurements were performed on the LD at the level of the 12th and 13th ribs, one and 24 hours after slaughter with a Konica Mi- nolta cr-400 (Japan) spectro-colorimeter. com- mission International de I’Eclairage (cIE) (1976) standards were used for the measurements (cIE, 1986). the color parameters (L*-lightness, a*-redness, b*-yellowness) were measured from five different sections of each sample. A data set was created by taking the average of measure- ments for each of the three parameters (ÖnEnÇ et al., 1999a,b). then c (chroma = (a*2+b*2)1/2) and H° (hue = tan-1(b*/a*) values were calculat- ed (ÖnEnÇ, 2003). Water holding capacities (WHcs) were meas- ured in accordance with the press method de- veloped by Grau and Hamm (1956). A 25 g meat sample was taken from each main sample and ground in an Aura type 103 (turkey) brand mini chopper. then, 1 g of chopped sample was placed in between two filter papers (Whatman 1 Qualitative circles 125mm Ø cat no: 1001 125); glass plates were placed above and below the filter papers and a 2.250 kg weight was placed on them. After five minutes, samples were tak- en out the filter papers and re-weighed (bAr- ton-GADE et al., 1993). then, WHc was cal- culated, using the equation of “WHc (%) = ((In- itial sample weight – Pressed sample weight) / Initial sample weight) x 100”. to determine drip loss (DL), 20-25 g samples were taken from LD muscle and vacuumed into plastic bags. the vacuumed samples were stored at 4°c. the samples were then taken out of the vacuum bags three and seven days later, dried without any pressure, and reweighed. the ra- tio of the difference between the initial and final weights was calculated to find DL% after three and seven days (bonD and WArnEr, 2007). to determine the cL, 40-50 g samples were taken from the LD muscle, placed into vacu- um bags and cooked in a water bath (70°c) for 40 min. the samples were then placed under a running tap for 30 minutes to lower the sam- ple temperature to 25°c (MItcHAotHAI et al., 2006). then the samples were taken out of the bags, blotted without any added pressure and re- weighed. the cL was calculated using the equa- tion of “cL (%) = ((Initial sample weight – cooked sample weight) / Initial sample weight) x 100. textural characteristics were determined at room temperature, using the P36/r probe of a texture Analyzer (tA.XP Plus - stable Micro sys- tems, Godalming, uK) (MArtİnEZ et al., 2004). sample dimensions were arranged into 1x1x1 cm (cubic) cubes and before, during and after, probe speeds were respectively set as 1, 5 and 5 mm/s. the M, cP and cA contents of the LD muscle samples were determined in accordance with AoAc (1990). the IF contents were determined, according to the heat extraction method with an Ankom (Xt10, spain) Extractor device (oKEu- Do et al., 2007). the extraction of lipids for fatty acid analy- sis was performed with chloroform/methanol (2:1), as described by FoLcH et al. (1957). tri- glycerides in the cold-extracted lipids were con- verted into fatty acid methyl esters, in accord- ance with Aocs (1993). the fatty acid compo- sition of the samples were determined using a Perkin Elmer clarus 500 (usA) gas chromatog- raphy device, equipped with a FID (Flame Ioni- zation Detector) detector and a thermo scientif- ic tr 70 capillary column (30 m x 0,25 mm and 0,25 μ film thickness). Helium (1 mL/min) was used as a carrier gas. split ratio was set as 1/50, operational temperature for injection block as 250°c and for detector as 260°c. the tempera- ture increase rate was 1°c/min, to increase the column temperature from 140°c to 180°c and 2°c from 180°c to 200°c. samples were kept at a final temperature of 200°c for eight minutes. A supelco 37 FAME mix (c4-c24) (bellefonte, PA, usA) was used as the standard by which to de- fine the fatty acids. the results were expressed in % methyl esters. About 0.3-0.5 g of lipid samples was taken from the lipid, cold-extracted from the LD mus- cle, and the samples were placed into closed glass tubes. then, 0.3 mL 33% KoH and 3 mL 95% ethyl alcohol solution was added, and the mixture roughly mixed and saponificated in a water bath at 60°c for 15 min. the tubes were cooled down, 10 mL hexane and 3 mL of distilled water was added and the roughly mixed samples were then kept for 10 minutes for phase separa- tion. to determine cholesterol content, a 1 mL sample was removed from the hexane fraction into a test tube. the hexane was removed us- ing nitrogen gas. A Fecl 3 stock solution was pre- pared with 840 mg Fecl 3 and 10 mL concentrated glacial acetic acid, and 1 mL of this stock solu- tion was increased to 100 mL with a concentrat- ed glacial acetic acid, to prepare the Fecl 3 work- ing solution. Later on, the 1.5 mL Fecl 3 working solution was added to test tube and the resulting solution was roughly mixed. After 15 minutes, 1 mL of concentrated sulphuric acid was add- ed and the samples were mixed in a tube mix- er for 1 min. the tubes were placed in the dark for 45 min. the absorbance values of the re- sulting purple color were read at 560 nm wave- length of a unIcAM uV/Vis model spectropho- tometer. cholesterol standard curves were cre- http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0956713503001300 134 Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 table 2 - Meat quality characteristics of M. longissimus dorsi et thoracis (LD). Traits Slaughter weight (kg) MSE P 30 35 40 45 50 pH 45m 6.15c 6.10c 6.31b 6.14c 6.46a 0.01 *** pH 24h 5.55c 5.60c 5.75ab 5.70b 5.80a 0.01 *** Color 60m L* 33.99a 33.90ab 33.23b 33.59ab 32.10c 0.10 *** a* 12.55a 12.25a 10.47b 10.27b 10.49b 0.08 *** b* 3.15a 3.04a 1.30b 1.07b 0.94b 0.07 *** C* 12.94a 12.64a 10.57b 10.33b 10.53b 0.09 *** H° 14.38a 13.41a 6.50b 5.90b 5.34b 0.29 *** Color 24h L* 41.04a 39.70ab 39.68ab 39.58ab 38.60b 0.22 * a* 13.27d 14.35ab 14.12bc 13.75c 14.61a 0.06 *** b* 5.03a 5.35a 4.08b 4.18b 5.02a 0.06 *** C* 14.21b 15.36a 14.64b 14.39b 15.37a 0.07 *** H° 20.83a 20.21a 16.25c 16.55c 18.79b 0.20 *** Drip loss (%) 3rd day 8.10a 8.71a 7.15b 9.67a 9.94a 0.20 *** 7th day 12.22ab 11.73ab 9.35c 13.20a 10.94b 0.24 *** Cooking loss (%) 28.25a 27.23a 26.11ab 25.03b 24.73b 0.29 ** WHC (%) 34.37d 36.20c 36.28c 37.74b 39.15a 0.21 *** Texture (kg/cm2) 4.51 4.91 5.18 5.96 7.29 0.35 - WHC: Water Holding Capacity; MSE: Mean Standard Error -: Non-significant, *: P<0.05, **: P<0.01, ***: P<0.001 Means within a row with different letters differ significantly (P<0.05) ated and the cholesterol content of the samples was expressed as mg cholesterol/100 g sample (ruDEL and MorrIs, 1973). statistical analyses were performed using sPss (1999) software. the Duncan’s test was used to determine differences among the means (DÜZGÜnEŞ et al., 1987). rEsuLts AnD DIscussIon Mean values, for the meat quality traits of the LD muscles of Karayaka lambs with different sWs, are shown in table 2, the compositional nutrient content in table 3 and, fatty acid com- position and cholesterol contents in table 4. table 3 - compositional properties of M. longissimus dorsi et thoracis (LD) (%). Traits Slaughter weight (kg) MSE P 30 35 40 45 50 Moisture 75.92ab 75.08cd 76.18a 74.46d 75.33bc 0.12 *** Protein 20.14ab 20.82a 20.13ab 20.68a 19.85b 0.11 * IF 2.59b 2.67b 2.41b 3.44a 2.98ab 0.08 ** Ash 1.08 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.06 0.01 - IF: Intramuscular Fat; MSE: Mean Standard Error -: Non-significant, *: P<0.05, **: P<0.01, ***: P<0.001 Means within a row with different letters differ significantly (P<0.05) Meat pH values have distinctive impacts on meat quality traits, such as color, WHc and tex- ture. therefore, the pH plays a significant role in the quality assessment of meat (KArAcA, 2010). In the present study, pH measurements were performed 45 minutes (pH 45m ) and 24 hours (pH 24h ) after the slaughter. In both measurement times, the differences in muscle pH values of the slaughter groups were found to be significant (P<0.001; table 2). similar to the current find- ings, the significant effects of sWs on final pH values were reported in previous studies (bErI- AIn et al., 2000; YAKAn and ÜnAL, 2010); how- ever, others reported insignificant effects (MAr- tÍnEZ-cErEZo et al., 2005). Increasing pH 24h val- ues were observed in this study with increas- Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 135 ing sWs and the relevant values varied between 5.55 – 5.80. based on the assumption that a fi- nal pH value above 5.8 is considered undesira- ble, it can be said that the final pH ranges were both appropriate and inside normal range (YA- KAn and ÜnAL, 2010). WHc is closely related to pH and therefore it is considered as a significant parameter for meat quality assessments (YAKAn, 2008). the differ- ences between WHcs of the slaughter groups were also found to be significant (P<0.001; table 2). Increasing WHc values were observed with increasing sWs. LAWrIE and LEDWArD (2006) re- ported increasing WHcs with increasing pH val- ues. However, current findings were contrary to those reports. cold-induced contraction might have such effects on WHc. such contractions have higher impacts on carcasses with high pH levels. cold carcass contractions result in de- creasing intra-myofibril spaces and water re- lease from the meat (KArAcA, 2010). the WHcs of lambs fed with concentrated feed were report- ed as between 9.76 - 28.27 (bErIAIn et al., 2000; EKIZ et al., 2009; YAKAn and ÜnAL, 2010). consumers commonly assess the meat they buy based on fattiness, general appearance and color; regarding light colored meat as that of young animals, which they prefer to buy (sAÑu- Do et al., 2007). In the present study, the color parameters L*, a* and b* were measured over hot carcasses (60 minutes after slaughter) and cold carcasses (24 hours after slaughter) of LD muscle samples and significant differences were observed between slaughter groups with regard to L*, a*, b*, c* and H° values, in both measure- ment periods (P<0.05; table 2). similar to the current findings, bErIAIn et al. (2000) and MAr- tInEZ-cErEZo et al. (2005) reported significant effects of sWs on the color parameters. the de- creasing L* values observed in this study were concomitant with increasing sWs. the a* val- ues recorded at 24h in 50 kg group was high- er than those recorded in 40 and 45 kg groups and similar to those recorded in 35 kg group. bErIAIn et al. (2000) carried out a study on La- cha and rasa Aragonesa lambs with different sWs (12, 24 and 36 kg) and reported decreas- ing L* values and increasing a* values with in- creasing sWs. In other studies carried out with local lamb breeds, fed by concentrated feeds, L* values (24 hours after slaughter) were reported as between 37.91 – 42.72; a* values as between table 4 - cholesterol content (mg/100 g meat) and fatty acid composition (%) of lipids of M. longissimus dorsi et thoracis (LD). Traits Slaughter weight (kg) MSE P 30 35 40 45 50 C8:0 0.210 0.170 0.172 0.156 0.154 0.01 - C10:0 0.310 0.258 0.220 0.222 0.242 0.01 - C11:0 7.188 6.156 6.123 5.664 5.530 0.14 - C12:0 0.415 0.224 0.172 0.138 0.142 0.03 - C14:0 2.927a 2.940a 2.725ab 2.530ab 2.380b 0.07 * C14:1 0.215 0.134 0.090 0.110 0.122 0.01 - C15:0 0.300 0.204 0.165 0.104 0.200 0.02 - C16:0 23.135 23.206 23.493 23.914 24.326 0.21 - C16:1 1.055 1.278 0.928 1.234 0.808 0.11 - C17:0 0.750 0.968 0.717 0.818 0.808 0.07 - C17:1 0.550 0.695 0.537 0.612 0.584 0.05 - C18:0 13.792b 14.374b 14.350b 13.964b 16.306a 0.25 ** C18:1 37.867 39.622 39.980 43.132 40.294 0.59 - C18:2 (n-6) 7.572a 6.790ab 7.380a 5.334b 5.878ab 0.28 * C18:3 (n-6) 0.028 0.098 0.012 0.008 0.014 0.01 - C18:3 (n-3) 0.023 0.030 0.005 0.012 0.010 0.01 - C20:0 0.140 0.060 0.065 0.042 0.036 0.01 - C20:1 0.247 0.244 0.213 0.138 0.178 0.03 - C20:3 (n-3) 0.180 0.102 0.060 0.058 0.102 0.01 - C21:0 0.188 0.026 0.015 0.034 0.016 0.02 - C22:1 2.725a 2.442a 2.527a 1.722b 1.832b 0.11 ** ΣSFA 48.947ab 48.586b 48.217b 47.586b 50.140a 0.21 ** ΣMUFA 42.660b 44.414b 44.275b 46.948a 43.818b 0.38 * ΣPUFA 7.779a 6.980ab 7.449a 5.362b 5.979ab 0.27 * (ΣMUFA+ΣPUFA)/ΣSFA 1.033bc 1.059abc 1.073ab 1.102a 0.995c 0.09 * ΣPUFA/ΣSFA 0.159a 0.144ab 0.154abc 0.113c 0.119bc 0.05 * Total cholesterol 199.799b 194.143bc 162.044d 224.326a 190.381c 3.03 *** MSE: Mean Standard Error -: Non-significant, *: P<0.05, **: P<0.01, ***: P<0.001; Means within a row with different letters differ significantly (P<0.05); SFA: Saturated Fatty Acid; MUFA: Mo- no-Unsaturated Fatty Acid; PUFA: Poly-Unsaturated Fatty Acid 136 Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 16.08 – 21.26 and b* values as between 5.10 – 8.45 (EKIZ et. al., 2009; EsEnbuĞA et. al., 2009; KArAcA, 2010; YAKAn and ÜnAL, 2010). Various researchers have shown carcass weight as the most significant factor indicat- ing lamb carcass and meat quality (DİAZ et al., 2002; VErGArA et al., 1999). PEÑA et al. (2005) reported darkened meat color with increasing lamb carcass weights. similar to the current findings, sAÑuDo et al. (2000) reported decreas- ing a* values and increasing L* values with de- creasing carcass fat ratios. texture is another factor affecting meat quali- ty. consumers specify meat hardness as a signif- icant quality indicator (KArAcA, 2010). sHAcKEL- ForD et al. (1991) reported that consumers and taste panelists indicated meats with a hardness value over 5.5 kg/cm2 as hard meats. For Karaya- ka lambs in the present study, except for the sW groups of 45 kg (5.96 kg/cm2) and 50 kg (7.29 kg/ cm2), the hardness values were within the limits specified by sHAcKELForD et al. (1991). Although not significant (P>0.05), increasing hardness val- ues were observed in this study with increasing sWs (table 2). the hardness value of entire sW groups of Karayaka lambs were lower than the values reported by EsEnbuĞA et al. (2001) for Awassi and red Karaman. the hardness value of 40 kg sW group of the present study were higher than those reported by EKIZ et al. (2009) for Meri- no, ramlıç, Kivircik lambs (40-41 kg sW); and by PErLo et al.. (2008), for corriedale lambs (41 kg sW). some other researchers reported the hard- ness values of lambs fed with concentrated feeds (24-30 sW) as between 3.35-4.01 kg/cm2 (sAn- tos-sILVA et al., 2002a; EKIZ et al., 2009; YAKAn and ÜnAL, 2010). With regard to DL on 3rd and 7th days, the differences between the slaughter groups were found to be significant (P<0.001; table 2). In- creasing sWs resulted in increasing DLs on the third day. the highest DL on 3rd and 7th days was observed in the 50 kg (9.94%) and 45 kg (13.20%) weight groups. the cL values decreased with increasing sWs (P<0.01; table 2). Although GÖKALP et al. (1993) indicated lower cL values for high WHc meats, contrary results were observed in this study. EKIZ et al. (2009) slaughtered Merino, ramlıc and Ki- vircik lambs fed with concentrated feeds at 40-41 kg weights and observed the cL, respectively as 27.14, 25.57 and 29.54%. the cL for 40 kg sW of the present study (26.11%) was higher than the value determined by EKIZ et al. (2009) for the same-weight ramlıc lambs, and lower than Meri- no and Kivircik lambs. the cL determined for 30 kg sW groups of Karayaka lambs was similar to that reported by the same researchers for 26 kg Imroz lambs (28.91%) and higher than the value reported by chios lambs (27.81%). While the differences between sW groups were found to be significant with regard to cP and M contents (P<0.05), the differences in cA con- tents of the groups were insignificant (P>0.05; table 3). IF in 50 kg was similar to IF observed in all the other sW groups. the highest value was observed in the 45 kg (3.44%) groups and the lowest val- ue was seen in the 40 kg (2.41%) sW groups. YA- KAn (2008) reported a decreasing IF content in bafra lambs with increasing sWs, with the high- est value for 30 kg (4.20%) and the lowest value for 40 kg (2.80%) weight groups. the cP ratios for the Karayaka lambs in the present study were similar to the values determined by previous re- searchers for local, crossbred and heritage breeds of lamb (bErIAIn et al., 2000; MAcIt et al., 2003; PErLo et al., 2008; EsEnbuĞA et al., 2009). the LD muscle M contents of Karayaka lambs of the present study (74-76%) were similar to values reported by the other researchers for the same muscle (73-76%) (bErIAIn et al., 2000; PErLo et al., 2008; EsEnbuĞA et al., 2009). In ruminants, almost all of the fats are local- ized as triglycerides in adipose, and fatty acids are localized as c16 and c18. In general, more than 80% of the fatty acids are composed of c14:0 (myristic acid); c16:0 (palmitic acid), c18:0 (stearic acid) and c18:1 (oleic acid) (KArAcA, 2010). the order of those primary fatty acids in the present study was observed as c18:1, c16:0 and c18:0 in all sW groups and only the differ- ences in the c14:0 and c18:0 fatty acids were found to be significant (P<0.05; table 4). With re- gard to unsaturated fatty acids, the differences in c18:2 (n-6) (linoleic acid) and c22:1 (erucic acid) fatty acids of the weight groups were found to be significant (P<0.05). on the other hand, differenc- es in the monounsaturated fatty acid contents of the groups were insignificant (P>0.05). the differ- ences between the sW groups were also found to be significant, with regard to total monounsatu- rated fatty acids, total polyunsaturated fatty ac- ids, total unsaturated fatty acid/total saturated fatty acid ratios and total polyunsaturated fatty acid/total saturated fatty acid ratios (P<0.05). the highest total saturated fatty acid content was ob- served in the 50 kg (50.14%) and the lowest in the 45 kg (47.58%) sW group. In general, a decreas- ing total of saturated fatty acid contents were ob- served with increasing sWs. While such decreas- es comply with the findings of some previous re- search (DÍAZ et al., 2005; orIAnI et al., 2005; YA- KAn and ÜnAL, 2010), they differed from an oth- er study (sAntos-sILVA et al., 2002b). the total unsaturated fatty acid / total saturated fatty acid ratios of Karayaka lambs of the present study var- ied between 0.99-1.10. such values were report- ed in previous studies as between 0.09 – 0.95 for the lambs fed with concentrated feeds (roWE et al., 1999; DÍAZ et al., 2002; KArAbAcAK, 2007). the total unsaturated fatty acid / total saturat- ed fatty acid ratios of the Karayaka lambs in the present study were higher than the other stud- ies. such differences were mainly due to differ- ences in genotype and the age of slaughter, since http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921448802000160 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921448802000160 Ital. J. Food Sci., vol. 28 - 2016 137 genotype, age of slaughter, gender and type of fat stores, and the anatomic location of muscles and fats are major factors affecting the fatty acid com- position of meat. the differences in cholesterol levels of the sW groups were found to be significant (P<0.001; table 4). the highest total cholesterol level was observed in the 45 kg (224.32 mg/100 g meat), the lowest value in the 40 kg (162.04 mg/100 g meat) weight groups. YAKAn and unAL (2010) carried out a study on bafra lambs and report- ed the highest total cholesterol levels for the 45 kg (63.00 mg/100 g meat) and the lowest levels for the 35 kg (53.80 mg/100 g meat) sW groups. buncH et al. (2004) reported the total choles- terol level of Wool lambs with 46-54 kg sWs and fed with concentrated feed, as 117 mg/100 g meat; as 73 mg/100 g meat for callpyge Wool x st. croix lambs; 50 mg/100 g meat for callpyge Wool x Wool lambs; 149 mg/100 g meat for Dorp- er x Wool lambs and 131mg/100 g meat for Dor- per x st. croix lambs. similarly, sALVAtorI et al. (2004) reported the total cholesterol level of ex- tensively fed Ile de France x Parliarola and Gen- tile di Puglia sopravissana lambs respectively as 63.0 and 60.3 mg/100 g meat. In another study carried out on corriedale and corriedale cross- breds, the total cholesterol level was reported as 62.03 for the lambs fed with concentrated feeds and as 57.76 mg/100 g meat for range-fed lambs (roWE et al., 1999). the total cholesterol values of the LD muscle of the Karayaka lambs in the present study were higher than thoses values reported by roWE et al. (1999), sALVAtorI et al. (2004) and buncH et al. (2004). concLusIons In conclusion, with regard to meat quality pa- rameters, except for cA and hardness, the differ- ences in entire traits of LD muscle of the differ- ent sW groups of Karayaka lambs of the present study were found to be significant. Increasing sWs resulted in increasing WHc and hardness values, and decreasing cL values, but the differ- ences between the hardness values of the sam- ples were not found to be significant. Among the fatty acids, except for c14:0, c18:0, c18:2 (n-6) and c22:1, differences in the entire fatty acid con- tents of sW groups were found to be insignificant. 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Paper Received May 14, 2014 Accepted June 14, 2015 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Sa%C3%B1udo C%5BAuthor%5D&cauthor=true&cauthor_uid=22061776 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Alfonso M%5BAuthor%5D&cauthor=true&cauthor_uid=22061776 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=S%C3%A1nchez A%5BAuthor%5D&cauthor=true&cauthor_uid=22061776 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Delfa R%5BAuthor%5D&cauthor=true&cauthor_uid=22061776 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Teixeira A%5BAuthor%5D&cauthor=true&cauthor_uid=22061776 http://www.tuik.gov.tr/VeriBilgi.do%3Falt_id http://www.tuik.gov.tr/VeriBilgi.do%3Falt_id