Influence of slaughter season and sex on fatty acid composition, cholesterol and α-tocopherol contents on different muscles of Barrosã-PDO veal.

The influence of slaughter season and sex on intramuscular total lipids (ITL) neutral lipid (NL) and phospholipid (PL) compositions, cholesterol and α-tocopherol contents were evaluated in Biceps femoris (Bf), Longissimus dorsi (Ld) and Supraspinatus (Ss) muscles from 92 Barrosã-PDO (Protected Denomination of Origin) calves. ITL content in Bf muscle was affected by slaughter season and sex whereas NL content was only affected by slaughter season. Neither sex nor slaughter season influenced cholesterol and α-tocopherol contents in the muscles under study. Concerning NL composition, sex was an important source of variation on the proportions of total SFA and MUFA in all muscles. Irrespective of the considered muscle, males had higher total SFA but lower total MUFA and MUFA/SFA contents than females. Slaughter season influenced C18:2 cis-9 trans-11 (CLA) content in Bf (P<0.01) and in Ss muscles (P<0.05) with calves slaughtered in autumn showing higher values than their counterparts. Total MUFA, n-3 PUFA and n-6/n-3 ratio contents in Ld muscle were also affected by slaughter season. Regarding PL composition, slaughter season×sex interaction affected total SFA, PUFA/SFA and n-6 PUFA contents in Bf and Ss muscles. In addition, this interaction influenced total MUFA (P<0.05) in Bf muscle and total PUFA (P<0.01) in Ss muscle. CLA content in PL from Ld was influenced by sex (P<0.05) and by slaughter season (P<0.01), with females slaughtered in autumn presenting the highest content. These results clearly indicate that sex and slaughter season are important factors that influence the fatty acid composition of Barrosã-PDO veal.