title: Evaluation of physicochemical properties, proximate and nutritional composition of Gracilaria edulis collected from Palk Bay.
abstract: Gracilaria edulis, a red alga present in southeast coast of India was evaluated for its nutritional composition. FT-IR analysis of soluble polysaccharides revealed the presence of galactans, 3,6-anhydro-α-L-galactopyranose, sulphated galactose and the gelling agent agar, with the sulphate content estimated as 51.01 μg/mg of polysaccharide. Results of physicochemical properties and nutritional profile reveal the presence of dietary fibre (8.9 ± 0.62% DW), carbohydrate (101.61 ± 1.8 mg/g DW), crude protein (6.68 ± 0.94 mg/g DW) and lipid content (8.3 ± 1.03 mg/g DW). G. edulis contains biologically important fatty acids like palmitic acid (2.06%), linolenic acid (2.56%), and oleic acid (1.98%). The other nutritional components present in high amounts are proline, chlorophyll A and B, all the essential amino acids and vitamin A, E and C. These findings suggest that G. edulis has potent nutritional value which might be used as a source of nutrients for human and animals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Alagappa University, Karaikudi 630 004, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Ravi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sakthivel
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Alagappa University, Karaikudi 630 004, Tamil Nadu, India. Electronic address: devikasi@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Kasi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pandima Devi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D061006:Bays; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000032:analysis; D002734:Chlorophyll / Q000032:analysis; D004043:Dietary Fiber / Q000032:analysis; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000032:analysis; D044724:Gracilaria / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008055:Lipids / Q000032:analysis; D009753:Nutritive Value; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000032:analysis*; D011134:Polysaccharides / Q000032:analysis; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D012624:Seaweed / Q000737:chemistry*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
chemical_list: D002241:Carbohydrates; D004043:Dietary Fiber; D005227:Fatty Acids; D008055:Lipids; D010936:Plant Extracts; D011134:Polysaccharides; D011506:Proteins; D002734:Chlorophyll
keywords: FT-IR; Nutritional profile; Physicochemical properties; Red alga; Sulphate content