Department of Animal Medicine, Production and Health, MAPS, University of Padova, Agripolis, Viale dell'Università 16, 35020 Legnaro, Padova, Italy.
Laboratory of Safety and Quality of the Food Chain of Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Vicenza, Italy.
Animal. 2024 Aug;18(8):101221. doi: 10.1016/j.animal.2024.101221. Epub 2024 Jun 20.
Silkworms have been farmed for their silk since ancient times. After silk reeling, their chrysalides are consumed as food in several Asian countries. Despite the long rearing tradition of this insect, few studies have investigated the silkworm's microbiological safety all along the life cycle, focusing on detecting silkworm pathogens or on the safety of the dried chrysalis for food consumption. However, the in-farm rearing process, which takes around forty days, may affect the microbial load of the silkworm and of the rearing environment, as well as the quality of fresh cocoon and other performance parameters. No data is available on how microbial contamination changes during the rearing period and between different farmers. Furthermore, in light of the possible use of the chrysalis as food, it is crucial to understand how its microbial load varies according to the water content. To address these specific questions, we conducted an investigation involving the analysis of specific microbial indicators commonly used in the food chain. We collected environmental and silkworm samples from several farms. The examination covered the entire life cycle of silkworms, beginning with the first instar larvae and concluding with the scrutiny of both freshly harvested and dried pupae. Silkworm farms in Northeast Italy proved to be an appropriate model system for carrying out the experimentation. Additionally, an evaluation of rearing performance was conducted, with a focus on the quality of fresh cocoons and the survival rate of the insects.
自古以来，人们就一直养殖蚕来获取其丝绸。在缫丝后，它们的蛹在几个亚洲国家被当作食物消费。尽管这种昆虫已经被长期饲养，但很少有研究一直关注其整个生命周期的微生物安全性，主要集中在检测蚕病原体或干燥蛹作为食物的安全性上。然而，大约需要四十天的农场内饲养过程可能会影响蚕及其饲养环境的微生物负荷，以及新鲜蚕茧的质量和其他性能参数。关于在饲养期间以及不同农民之间微生物污染如何变化，没有数据。此外，鉴于蛹可能被用作食物，了解其微生物负荷如何根据含水量而变化至关重要。为了解决这些具体问题，我们进行了一项涉及分析食品链中常用的特定微生物指标的调查。我们从几个农场收集了环境和蚕样本。检查涵盖了蚕的整个生命周期，从第一龄幼虫开始，一直到新鲜收获和干燥蛹的检查结束。意大利东北部的蚕农场被证明是开展实验的合适模型系统。此外，还进行了饲养性能评估，重点关注新鲜蚕茧的质量和昆虫的存活率。
