School of Material Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, 639798, Singapore.
School of Material Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, 639798, Singapore; Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering (SCELSE), Nanyang Technological University, 60 Nanyang Drive, 67551, Singapore; Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, 11 Mandalay Road, 308232, Singapore.
Biomater Adv. 2024 Dec;165:214022. doi: 10.1016/j.bioadv.2024.214022. Epub 2024 Aug 31.
The extensive investigation into the capacity of mealworms to digest diverse food by-products, as well as plastic wastes, has been a focal point in recent years. The transition from traditional diet sources like brans to food wastes has the potential to impact the physiological properties of mealworms. This study explored the utilization of various industrial food wastes such as okara, barley spent grain (BSG), sesame oil meal (SOM), and spent coffee grounds (SCG) as feed alternatives, and reports on their survival rate, biomass variations, and nutritional composition. In additional, the shift in their gut microbiota was also assessed. Among the range of industrial food wastes, mealworms exhibited the most robust growth performance when nourished with BSG. This particular group showed a survival rate of 98.33 % and a biomass increase of 23.06 %. In contrast, mealworms fed with SCG demonstrated the lowest survival rate and experienced a significant reduction in biomass. Although the groups fed with okara and SCG displayed moderate growth performance, both exhibited protein levels comparable to those observed in the oatmeal-fed group (used as the positive control). Notably, the inclusion of BSG in the mealworm diet exhibited the potential to enrich their omega-3 fatty acid content, suggesting potential benefits for applications as animal feed or even human consumption. Furthermore, an analysis of the gut microbiome was conducted to investigate the associations between specific diets and the composition of mealworm gut microbiota. In summary, food wastes such as BSG may be repurposed as feed substrates for mealworms before converting them into an alternative source of protein.
近年来，人们广泛研究了黄粉虫消化各种食物副产品和塑料废物的能力。从麸皮等传统饲料来源向食物废物的转变，有可能影响黄粉虫的生理特性。本研究探讨了各种工业食物废物（如豆渣、大麦废谷粒（BSG）、芝麻油渣（SOM）和废咖啡渣（SCG））作为替代饲料的利用，并报告了它们的存活率、生物量变化和营养成分。此外，还评估了它们肠道微生物群的变化。在各种工业食物废物中，黄粉虫在以 BSG 为食时表现出最强的生长性能。该组的存活率达到 98.33%，生物量增加了 23.06%。相比之下，以 SCG 为食的黄粉虫表现出最低的存活率，生物量显著减少。虽然以豆渣和 SCG 为食的组表现出中等的生长性能，但它们的蛋白质水平与以燕麦片为食的组（用作阳性对照）相当。值得注意的是，在黄粉虫饮食中添加 BSG 有可能丰富其ω-3 脂肪酸含量，这表明它们作为动物饲料甚至人类食用的潜在益处。此外，还对肠道微生物组进行了分析，以研究特定饮食与黄粉虫肠道微生物组组成之间的关系。总之，BSG 等食物废物可以在将其转化为替代蛋白质来源之前，被重新用作黄粉虫的饲料基质。
