Preliminary Nutritional Analysis of Lancelets,a Promising Seafood with Aquacultural Potential

Abstract

Lancelets are filter feeding, fish-like, marine chordates that resemble anchovies. Although they are widely distributed in coastal areas of the U.S.A., especially in the Southeast, and have been used as a food source in other countries, the only nutritional analysis of lancelets was performed in 1941 on preserved specimens. We report nutritional data on freshly processed lancelets, including a proximate analysis, fatty acid profile, and amino acid profile. These data are preliminary because of the limited number of samples and time periods of collection, but they are important because no similar data exist for this potential food resource. Moisture composed 88.9% of the sample, protein 9.4%, ash 1.3%, and fat 0.7%. Carbohydrates, as estimated by subtraction from the total, are absent. Cholesterol was only 18.3 mg per 100 g sample. Omega-3 fatty acids composed 30% of total fatty acids or 0.58 g per 100 g sample of whole lancelets. The fatty acid profile reveals some similarities to that of vertebrate fishes as well as to invertebrate shellfish, but also reflects the unique nature of lancelets. An uncommon omega-3 fatty acid, 22:5, is prevalent in the lancelet profile in addition to 22:6 and 20:5. The fatty acid data also suggest that the diet of lancelets is diverse, consisting of phytoplankton and zooplankton. The amino acid profile, with glutamic acid, aspartic acid, and glycine as the most common residues, reflects the preponderance of muscle and collagen and the absence of cartilage and bone.