Nutritional qualities of normal and precocious adult male Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis)

The nutritional values of edible gonad, hepatopancreas and muscle tissues from normal and precocious adult male Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis) were investigated herein. The results showed that the average weight and meat yield (MY) of normal crabs were significantly higher than those of precocious crabs, while the hepatopancreas indexes (HSI) and gonadosomatic indexes (GSI) had no significant differences. Precocious and normal crabs had greater protein and lipid contents, respectively, and the differences were mainly reflected in gonads and hepatopancreas. While assessing the amino acid profiles, both precocious and normal crabs could be high-quality protein sources, particularly the precocious crabs which showed higher levels of essential amino acids. In fatty acid profiling experiments, precocious crabs revealed higher EPA, ∑n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and ∑n-3/∑n-6 ratios than normal crabs; however, DHA and ∑n-6 PUFA contents were considerably lower. Additionally, contents of nutritious minerals K and Ca in precocious crabs were significantly higher than those in normal crabs, while Zn and Fe were significantly lower. In short, our data indicated that precocious Chinese mitten crabs are also a nutritious food, and even in some respects their nutritional value is higher than normal crabs.