Chemical Composition of Lipids Isolated from Selected Organs and Tissues of the Raccoon Dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides)

Our paper presents a qualitative analysis of particular lipid classes (phospholipids, triacylglycerols, cholesterol, free fatty acids) isolated from the tissues of raccoon dogs harvested in northeastern Poland. In all examined tissues (except for the liver) the dominant group of lipids were triacylglycerols. The amounts of lipids representing the other classes depended on the kind of tissue from which the fat was isolated. The concentration of phospholipids was 0.7% in subcutaneous tissue and 41.7% in the liver, cholesterol content ranged between 0.6 and 4.8%, while the amount of fee fatty acids varied from 0.3% in subcutaneous tissue to 5.1% in the liver. Fat deposited in different body parts of the raccoon dog is generally uniform with regard to FA composition. Particular attention should be paid to the presence of trans-octadecenoic acids in the tissues of raccoon dogs, since these acids are commonly found in ruminants and herbivores.