Abstract

The biological composition of fish food and water can affect the minerals and nutrient composition of the fish, showing the relationship between the fish, its habitat and what they eat. It has necessitated the research on the amino acid, mineral and proximate compositions of Heterotis niloticus and Macolor niger from coastal water bodies to investigate the nutritional status of these two prominent and economic important fish species. A total of 120 specimens of weight between 500 and 700g were examined. Water and benthic sediments from the three locations were analyzed for quality assessment (Badagry creek, Ikorodu and Lagos island area of Lagos, Nigeria). The amino acid and Proximate compositions were determined by method describes by Association of Analytical Chemist (AOAC). Mean body mineral constituent in the fish differed significantly (p<0.05) between the two species except from arsenic, lead and nickel. Lagos lagoon has the lowest percentage of iron in the water (0.08±0.00), while Ikorodu coastal water has the largest percentage (0.31±0.00), fat constituents values of 16.86±1.08 (H. niloticus) and 0.99±0.08 (M. niger) were detected in both species. Among the 8 essential amino acids detected; Leucine has the lowest mean value of 7.93±.04 in H. niloticus while M. niger had the highest concentration of 9.25±0.28 in H. niloticus and M. niger. All the amino acids were discovered to be significantly different at p<0.05. both fishes contains all the essential amino acids in the permissible and appreciable concentrations. Due to the abundant nutrients found in the two species examined, we hereby recommend H. niloticus and M. niger in the studied coastal waters for human consumption.

Keywords: Keywords: Proximate; Minerals; Amino acids; Heterotis niloticus; Macolor niger