Tag Archives: thinning
Fatty acid composition of structural lipids of normal and abnormal wool fibres
V. V. Havrylyak, V. M. Tkachuk
Institute of Animal Biology, National Academy of Agrarian Sciences, Lviv, Ukraine;
e-mail: havvita@ukr.net
The purpose of this study was to determine the fatty acid composition of structural lipids, isolated from normal and abnormal wool fibers. The results of these studies show that regardless of the type of wool fibers defect there are quantitative changes in their fatty acid composition. It was shown that the main fatty acid of the covalently bound lipids, isolated from the wool fibers, is 18-methyleicosanoic acid (18-MEA), comprising 40% of the total fatty acid, while its amount in free lipids in norm is less than 4%. The decrease of 18-MEA content in the covalently bound lipid both in pathological thin and entangled wool fibers was established, which is associated with damage of the cuticle layer surface. Increasing of 18-MEA content in the free lipids in the entangled wool fibers may indicate a rupture of tioester links between lipids and proteins of cuticle layer lamellar structures.
Internal lipids of felted, yellowed and pathologically thin wool
V. M. Tkachuk1, V. V. Havrylyak1, P. V. Stapay1, H. M. Sedilo2
1Institute of Animal Biology, NAAS of Ukraine, Lviv;
2Institute of Agriculture of Carpathian region, Obroshyno, Lviv region, Ukraine;
e-mail: havvita@ukr.net
The keratin fibers contain small amount of the internal lipids which are in free state or bound with fiber proteins via tioester of 18-methyleicosanoic acid. Today the origin of these lipids, their composition and functional properties are still not found. Therefore, our objective was to examine the content and composition of internal lipids in sheep’s wool with different defects. We observed that regardless of the type of fibers defect there are significant changes especially in the quality composition of the internal lipids, although the total content of free and covalently bound lipids in all cases is practically identical. Notably, both free and covalently bound lipids composition of felted and simultaneously felted and yellowed wool is characterized by changes in contents mainly of free fatty acids and ceramides whereas abnormal thinning of fibers is accompanied only by a decrease of sulfolipids.