Objective This study aims to elucidate the lipid composition of silver pomfret (Pampus argenteus) muscle, establishing a scientific foundation for its potential applications in food processing and functional food development.

Methods Wild silver pomfret samples were freeze-dried and ground into powder using liquid nitrogen. Total lipids were extracted from the muscle samples using methanol and chloroform. The lipid profile in muscle of P. argenteus was explored by Q-Exactive hybrid quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometer equipped with a HESⅠ-Ⅱ probe.

Results A total of 447 lipids belonging to 17 major classes were identified in P. argenteus. These included four classes of sphingolipids: sphingosine (So), ceramide (Cer), monoglycosylceramide (CerG1), and sphingomyelin (SM); two classes of neutral glycerolipids: diacylglycerol (DAG) and triacylglycerol (TAG); and 11 classes of phospholipids: lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), phosphatidylcholine (PC), lysophosphatidy- lethanolamine (LPE), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), lysophosphatidylserine (LPS), phosphatidylserine (PS), lysophosphatidylglycerol (LPG), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), lysophosphatidylinositol (LPI), phosphatidylinositol (PI), and phosphatidic acid (PA). Quantitative analysis demonstrated that neutral glycerolipids (54.93%) and phospholipids (43.82%) constituted the predominant lipid fractions. Triglycerides (TAG) represented the most abundant lipid species (38.37% of total lipids), while phosphatidylcholine (25.32%) and phosphatidylethanolamine (11.48%) emerged as the major phospholipid components. Fatty acid profiling identified 32 molecular species, comprising 11 saturated fatty acids (SFA), 8 monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), and 13 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), with PUFA exhibiting marginally higher abundance than SFA and MUFA. The major fatty acids in P. argenteus muscle were palmitic acid (C16:0), oleic acid (C18:1), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Conclution LC-MS-based lipidomic analysis demonstrated that silver pomfret muscle contains a diverse array of lipids, with notably high levels of DHA and EPA, supporting its classification as a nutritious seafood under the "Blue Granary" framework.