Species and age determination of central nervous system tissue by fatty acid patterns

• Published in: Journal of Chromatography A 2008-01, Vol.1179 (1), p.69-73
• Main Authors: Grießbach, Maria, Hartmann, Franziska, Massag, Nicole, Baumann, Daniela, Krex, Christian, Biedermann, Wolfgang, Truyen, Uwe, Lücker, Ernst
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Age determination; Aging; animal age; Animal productions; Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Brain Chemistry; Cattle; central nervous system; CNS detection; fatty acid composition; fatty acid ratios; fatty acids; Fatty Acids - analysis; Fatty Acids - isolation & purification; Food Analysis - methods; food contamination; Food industries; food safety; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; gas chromatography; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry - methods; GC–MS; General aspects; Hygiene and safety; mass spectrometry; meat; Nerve Tissue - chemistry; PLS-DA; prion diseases; Sheep; Species differentiation; Species Specificity; specified risk materials; SRM; Swine; Terrestrial animal productions; Vertebrates
• ISSN: 0021-9673
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2007.09.055

The banning of specified risk materials (SRMs) from food chain is one of the most important measures to protect the consumer against any exposition with the agent of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). In order to control the SRM-ban, suitable methods for the detection of SRMs have to be developed. In this study homogenized samples of central nervous system (CNS) tissue from cattle ( n = 38), sheep ( n = 38) and pig ( n = 40) were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The analysis was focused on the identification of fatty acid ratios for species differentiation and age estimation. We found a novel fatty acid ratio (C24:1(n-9)/(n-7))/(2OH–C24:1(n-9)/(n-7) for species differentiation. For the first time, we used multivariate analysis for species differentiation, based on fatty acid ratios. It showed an excellent predictive ability ( Q cum 2 ) Q cum 2 = 0.842 . For age estimation in cattle CNS we discovered a novel fatty acid ratio 2OH–C25:0/2OH–C24:1(n-7). The ratio is strongly correlated with age (coefficient of correlation ( r) = 0.935, Spearman-Rho). The corresponding regression analysis which allows the prediction of age by this ratio was acceptable (coefficient of determination ( R 2) = 0.831).