Studies on the seasonal variations in the proximate composition of ascidians from the Palk Bay, Southeast coast of India.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the seasonal fluctuations of the proximate composition of the ascidians muscle.

METHODS

The moisture content was estimated by drying 1 g of fresh tissue at a constant temperature at 105 °C for 24 h.The loss of weight was taken as moisture content. The total protein was estimated using the Biuret method. The total carbohydrate in dried sample was estimated spectrophotometrically following the phenol- sulphuric acid method. The lipid in the dried sample tissue was gravimetrically estimated following the chloroform-methanol mixture method. Ash content was determined gravimetrically by incinerating 1 g dried sample in muffle furnace at about 550 °C for 6 h and results are expressed in percentage.

RESULTS

It was found very difficult to compare the monthly variations, as all the ten species, exhibited wide fluctuations in their proximate compositions. For the sake of convenience, average seasonal values were calculated by summing the monthly values.

CONCLUSIONS

The proximate composition of the 10 commonly available ascidians showed high nutritive value and hence these groups especially solitary ascidians can be recommended for human consumption in terms of pickles, soup, curry and others after ensuring the safety of consumers.