Author(s)

Adeleke Adebanji Adepoju^1*, Oluwaferanmi Deborah Isinkaye², Bankole Emmanuel Ofeniforo³, Oluwaseun Adeyiola⁴, Eleojo Samuel Agada³, Dorcas Oluwaseun Ayo-Dada⁵

¹Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
²Department of Industrial Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria.
³Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Natural and Applied Science, Atiba University, Oyo, Nigeria.
⁴Department of Biomedical Science, College of Health Science and Technology, Ijero-Ekiti, Nigeria.
⁵Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Health Science and Technology, Ijero-Ekiti, Nigeria.

Consumption of seafood has increased globally over the past 50 years, from an average of 9.9 kg per capital in the 1960s to over 20 kg in 2016. In Nigeria, African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) has gained more attention in terms of farming and consumption compared to other seafood. This project was carried out to determine the level of amino acid composition in the head, muscle and tail of catfish so as to enlighten the public about their choice on the part of catfish to be eaten. Eight different sets of fresh catfish with a mean ± standard deviation of 15.6 kg ± 1.89, which were collected from a local fish pound in Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria, were used for the analysis. Extraction and evaluation of the amino acid composition were carried out using standard analytical techniques. The results obtained showed that high values of amino acids were observed in the fresh catfish (g/100g protein): 13.27 - 13.87 (Glu), 8.76 - 10.39 (Asp), 7.20 - 9.15 (Leu), 7.00 - 8.26 (Lys) and a low value in (Cys), 1.27 - 1.38. The total amino acids had a range of 89.16 - 92.12 g/100g. The coefficient of variation percent (CV %) for all the parameters determined were all generally low with values of 0.74 (observed for Ser) and 39.41 (observed for Pro). Total essential amino acid with histidine values ranged from 38.64 - 42.91 g/100g (CV % = 5.66). It was also observed that the concentrations (g/100g) of amino acids in the muscle of fresh catfish (92.12) are higher than that of the tail (91.98) and that of the head (89.16). There is no appreciable variation in the amino composition of the head, muscle and tail of catfish as the values observed were found to be statistically insignificant (p > 0.05). Therefore, it could be posited that the amino acid in the muscle, tail and head of African catfish would therefore be enough to prevent malnutrition in children and in adults who feed solely on any part of this fish as a main source of protein.

African Catfish, Amino Acid Composition, Muscle, Head, Tail

Adepoju, A. , Isinkaye, O. , Ofeniforo, B. , Adeyiola, O. , Agada, E. and Ayo-Dada, D. (2022) Comparative Analysis of Amino Acid Composition in the Head, Muscle and Tail of Fresh African Cat Fish (Clarias gariepinus). Journal of Agricultural Chemistry and Environment, 11, 231-239. doi: 10.4236/jacen.2022.114016.