CLMT Research Group for Insect Production and Processing, Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems (M2S), KU Leuven, B-3001, Campus Geel, Geel, B-2440, Belgium.
KU Leuven, Leuven Food Science and Nutrition Research Centre (LFoRCe), Leuven, B-3001, Belgium.
FEMS Microbiol Ecol. 2022 Sep 8;98(9). doi: 10.1093/femsec/fiac094.
Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) belong to the most widely reared insects as an alternative protein source at industrial scale. Bacteria in the larval gut can provide benefits for the animal, though some bacteria can also be pathogenic for the insect. Accurate characterization of the BSFL microbiota is important for the production of BSFL in terms of yield and microbiological safety. In this study, 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequence data sets from 11 studies were re-analysed to gain better insights in the BSFL gut microbiota, potential factors that influence their composition, and differences between the gut and the whole larvae microbiota. A core gut microbiota was found consisting of members of Enterococcus, Klebsiella, Morganella, Providencia, and Scrofimicrobium. Further, the factors 'Study', 'Age' and 'Feed' (i.e. rearing substrate of the larvae) significantly affected the microbiota gut composition. When compared to whole larvae, a significantly lower diversity was found for gut samples, suggesting that the larvae harboured additional microbes on their cuticle or in the insect body. Universal choices in insect sample type, primer selection and bio-informatics analysis pipeline can strengthen future meta-analyses and improve our understanding of the BSFL gut microbiota towards the optimization of insect rearing conditions and substrates.
黑水虻幼虫（BSFL）属于最广泛养殖的昆虫之一，可作为工业规模替代蛋白质来源。幼虫肠道中的细菌可以为动物提供益处，但有些细菌也可能对昆虫具有致病性。准确描述 BSFL 微生物群对于 BSFL 的生产具有重要意义，包括产量和微生物安全性。在这项研究中，重新分析了来自 11 项研究的 16S 核糖体 RNA 基因序列数据集，以更深入地了解 BSFL 肠道微生物群、影响其组成的潜在因素以及肠道和整个幼虫微生物群之间的差异。发现了一个核心肠道微生物群，由肠球菌、克雷伯氏菌、摩根菌、普罗维登斯菌和 Scrofimicrobium 的成员组成。此外，“研究”、“年龄”和“饲料”（即幼虫的饲养基质）等因素显著影响了微生物群的肠道组成。与整个幼虫相比，肠道样本的多样性显著降低，这表明幼虫的外骨骼或昆虫体内可能还存在其他微生物。在昆虫样本类型、引物选择和生物信息学分析管道方面的通用选择，可以加强未来的荟萃分析，并提高我们对 BSFL 肠道微生物群的理解，以优化昆虫饲养条件和基质。
