EFFECTS OF HIGH-ENERGY RADIATION ON LIPIDS OF FISH

The volatile compounds formed in the lipid fraction of mackerel by gamma irradiation under vacuum at 0.3, 2, and 6 Mrads and at 0° and 25° C. were investigated. Using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, 56 compounds, most of which were not reported previously, were identified. Radiolytic products included the normal alkanes C1 to C17, the 1-alkenes C2 to C17, the alkadienes C12 to C21, the internally unsaturated alkenes C14 to C21, the C17 triene, the C11 alkyne, and the C16, C16:1, and C18:1 normal aldehydes. Quantitative analysis demonstrated that the major products of irradiation were the longer-chain compounds, probably originating from radiolytic cleavage of the fatty acids near the carbonyl groups. © 1969, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.