Abstract: | A method for the assessment of the fatty acid profile in single eggs or larvae of marine fish has been developed. The method, which only requires 50 μg or less of tissue, is based on methanolysis, high-resolution gas chromatography and multivariate data-analysis. In four examples employing cod eggs and larvae, shrimp and periwinkles it is demonstrated that the fatty acid profile changes with changes in the environment, like temperature change, and also with man-induced changes, like oil-pollution. The fatty acid profile of cod eggs is shown to change during the development from newly spawned to just before hatching. |