Triglycerides variability in donkey milk

The distribution of triacylglycerols (TAGs) in donkey milk and of fatty acids in the glycerol backbone affect assimilation and lipolysis, so the utility of analytical methods to characterise fat fractions is proved. In this study an optimised gas chromatography/oncolumn injector method was used to study the TAG variability of various milk species. This method is useful for quality control aimed at standardising formulated donkey milk and was used to compare the TAG composition of lyophilised donkey milk distributed on the Italian market. Three TAG groups, based on variability degree, were detected and the most characterising TAG fraction was identified.