Transformation through the food chain of Lake Baikal hydrobionts fatty acids

The fatty-acid composition of tissues from Lake Baikal hydrobionts involved in the food chain such as Baikal seals, fish, and amphipods was studied. GC-MS detected more than 40 fatty acids with different degrees of unsaturation in tissues of Baikal hydrobionts. It was concluded from a comparison of the fatty-acid compositions of tissues from the studied animals that the formation mechanism of hydrobionts tissue is complicated and determined not only by the food composition but also the taxonomic formation specifics of the fatty-acid composition. Use of modern statistical data processing methods enabled food webs in the studied chain to be followed and the principal factors influencing the hydrobionts lipid composition to be determined.