Sains Malaysiana 40(2)(2011): 111–118

Composition and Sources of Sterols in Pulau Tinggi, Johor, Malaysia

(Komposisi dan Sumber Sterol di Pulau Tinggi, Johor, Malaysia)

Masni Mohd Ali*, Norfariza Humrawali & Mohd Talib Latif

School of Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia

Mohamad Pauzi Zakaria

Faculty of Environmental Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia

43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Received: 14 December 2009 / Accepted: 4 August 2010

ABSTRACT

This study explores the role of sterols as lipid biomarkers to indicate their input which originates from various sources in the marine environment. Sterols and their ratios were investigated in sediments taken from sixteen sampling stations at Pulau Tinggi, Johor in order to assess the sources of organic matter. The compounds extracted from the sediments were quantified using a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The distributions of sterols indicated that organic matter at all sampling stations originated from a mixture of marine source and terrestrial origins at different proportions. A total of eleven sterols were quantified , with the major compounds being phytosterols (44% of total sterols), cholesterol (11%), brassicasterol (11%) and fecal sterols (12%).

Keywords: Cholesterol; fecal sterol; lipid biomarker; phytosterol

ABSTRAK

Kajian ini mengetengahkan peranan sterol sebagai penunjuk biolipid untuk menunjukkan input sebatian-sebatian sterol yang berpunca daripada pelbagai sumber di pesekitaran marin. Sterol yang hadir di dalam sampel sedimen yang diambil dari 16 stesen pensampelan di Pulau Tinggi dikaji dengan menggunakan nisbah tertentu untuk menentukan sumber bahan organik tersebut. Sebatian yang diekstrak daripada sedimen dianalisis menggunakan gas kromatografi-spektrometri jisim (GC-MS). Taburan sterol menunjukkan bahan organik di semua stesen pensampelan berpunca daripada campuran sumber marin dan terestrial pada jumlah yang berbeza. Sebanyak 11 sterol dikenalpasti hadir dengan fitosterol merupakan sebatian utama (44% daripada jumlah sterol), diikuti oleh kolesterol (11%), brasikasterol (11%) dan sterol daripada sisa kumbahan (12%).

Kata kunci: Fitosterol; kolesterol; penunjuk biolipid; sterol; sterol kumbahan

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*Corresponding author; email: masni@ukm.my