Bioavailability of Docosahexaenoic (DHA) and Eicosapentaenoic (EPA) Acids in the Oil Extracted from <i>Pellonula</i> <i>leonensis</i> from the Congo River and Nianga Lake

The objective of this work is to characterize and determine the fatty acid composition Pellonula leonensis oil from Congo River Nianga Lake, in order bioavailability docosahexaenoic (DHA) eicosapentaenoic (EPA) acids. fish were caught southern Congo–Brazzaville localities Kombé (Brazzaville) Boko (Pool department) Lake (Pointe-Noire). extracted by Soxhlet method using hexane as solvent. fat content found around 32% for all six samples (3 kombe 3 Boko) 22% three Lake. All have similar profiles. These oils are characterized presence palmitic C16:0, 27 28%; oleic acid: C18:1 cis, 23 24%; stearic C18:0, 8 9%; palmitoleic C16:1, about 6%; linoleic C18:2 5%; (EPA): C20: 5 (n-3), 2-3%; arachidonic: C20:4 (n-6), margaric: C17:0, 2%; myristic: C14:0, linolenic: C18:3 (DHA): C22:6 docosapentaenoic (DPA): C22:5 1%. ratio PUFAs SFAs was approximately 0.50. Principal component analysis showed that anti-correlated with content. river, especially those Boko, highest EPA content, whereas lake DHA However, P. leonensis, although low, proves its nutritional value terms lipids.