Abstract:The crayfish, Procambarus clarkii, was a benthic crustacean which was good at jumping and crawling. Traditional culture areas included the Yangtze River basin in Hubei, Anhui, Jiangsu, etc. However, the culture areas of Procambarus clarkii in northern regions, represented by Heilongjiang Province, was gradually expanding, and the yield was increasing year by year with breakthroughs in the cultivation and breeding technology of Procambarus clarkii seedlings in cold regions. To investigate the effect of gender difference on the edible quality of Procambarus clarkii reared in the cold region’s pond, the sexually mature female and male Procambarus clarkii were collected to explore their edible parameters (chelate proportion, hepatosomatic index, meat yield) and quality characteristics (proximate composition, fatty acids, free amino acids, and mineral elements) under similar body weight (BW). The results illustrated that the cheliform weight (CW) and chelate proportion (CP) of the females were extremely significantly lower than those of the males, while the hepatopancreas weight (HW), abdominal muscle weight (AMW), hepatosomatic index (HSI), and meat yield (MY) were extremely significantly higher (P<0.01). The female hepatopancreas moisture was extremely significantly lower than that of the males, while the total lipid was extremely significantly higher (P<0.01). The total saturated fatty acids (∑SFA) and total monounsaturated fatty acids (∑MUFA) in the female hepatopancreas were significantly lower than those of the males, while the total polyunsaturated fatty acids (∑PUFA) were significantly higher (P<0.05), especially ALA, ARA, EPA, and DHA. In addition, the ∑EFA and ∑HUFA, ∑n-3 PUFA, ∑n-6 PUFA, n-3/n-6 PUFA, DHA+EPA, and h/H were significantly or extremely significantly higher than those of the males (P<0.05; P<0.01). The differences in fatty acids between female and male adult Procambarus clarkii muscles (7 items) were significantly lower than those in the hepatopancreas (31 items), with only C16:1n7, C17:1n7, LA, ALA, ARA, C20:3n3, and ∑EFA showing significant or extremely significant differences (P<0.05; P<0.01). Small influence was detected on the free amino acid (FAA) with different gender. Only the female muscle proline (Pro) was significantly higher than that of the males (P<0.05). The ∑EFAA was slightly higher in the hepatopancreas than that in the muscles, but lower Arg and ∑FAA were observed. The total umami values (∑TUV), total sweetness values (∑TSV), and the total bitterness values (∑TBV) in the female hepatopancreas were all lower than those of the males. Additionally, the ∑TUV and ∑TSV in the female muscle were also lower than those of the males, but the ∑TBV were higher. A relatively small impact on mineral element accumulation was observed, but there were obviously different contents of Na, K, Mg, and Fe elements both the females and males (P>0.05). The content and proportion of Fe elements in the hepatopancreas of Procambarus clarkii were significantly higher than those in the muscles, indicating that the hepatopancreas could be an important source of Fe intake for the human body. In summary, gender had a significant impact on the edible yield, proximate composition, and fatty acids in the hepatopancreas of Procambarus clarkii, as well as a relatively small impact on free amino acids, mineral elements, and fatty acids in muscles. This study will provide basic data for understanding the differences in edible quality between different genders of Procambarus clarkii reared in the cold regions’ pond.
