Identification of minor fatty acids in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) by GC–MS of their 2-alkenyl-4,4-dimethyloxazoline derivatives Original Research Article

The fatty acid composition of mussel lipids was determined by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) of their corresponding 2-alkenyl-4,4-dimethyloxazoline derivatives. Silver ion thin layer chromatography isolated enriched fractions of minor fatty acids extracted from mussels. Several non-methylene interrupted (NMI) fatty acids were singled out, and the non-methylene interrupted trienoic (NMIT) fatty acids 5,11,14–20:3 and 7,13,16–22:3 have been detected in marine mussels for the first time. This discovery strongly supports a previously suggested biosynthetic route implying the desaturation and subsequent elongation of 20:2ω6.