Structure of bovine milk fat triglycerides : I. Short and medium chain lengths.

The triglycerides of bovine milk fat globules were isolated and separated into short, medium and long chain lengths by thin-layer chromatography. The molecular weight distribution and the fatty acid composition of the component triglycerides was then separately determined by gas chromatography following argentation-thin-layer and preparative gas chromatography. Some 38 triglyceride types (28% of total), of which there could be up to 6 isomers, were specifically identified and quantitatively estimated. The quantitative estimates for the rest of the milk fat triglycerides were limited to much more complex glyceride groups. The results confirm the earlier claim that butyric and caproic acids occur in milk fat almost exclusively in combination with medium and long chain fatty acids.