Composition of chicken gallbladder bile

1. The proximate composition and, amino acid, fatty acid and mineral profiles of gallbladder bile of 35 d old broiler chickens were determined. 2. The dry matter (DM) content of the bile was determined to be 19.8 g/100 g. Fat, protein and ash contents in the bile were 24.9, 23.0 and 6.6 g/100 g DM, respectively. 3. The content of total fatty acids (FA) in the bile was determined to be 17.68 g/100 g DM. Unsaturated FA dominated the profile in the bile, with an unsaturated: saturated FA ratio of 1.36. Oleic, linoleic, and arachidonic acids were the main unsaturated FA, whereas palmitic and stearic acids were the major saturated FA. 4. A major finding was that the data established taurine as the primary amino acid in chicken bile and not glycine, as previously assumed. Taurine was the dominant amino acid, constituting 62% of bile protein. 5. Among the major minerals, sodium (2.56 g/100 g DM) was in the greatest concentration. The concentrations of other major minerals were relatively low. 6. The present work provided, for the first time, preliminary data on reference values for nutrients in the chicken gallbladder bile.