Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Institute of Environmental Biology, Laboratory for Biosustainability, Kożuchowska 5b, 51-631 Wrocław, Poland.
Faculty of Environmental Engineering, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego 27, 50370 Wrocław, Poland.
Sci Total Environ. 2024 Nov 20;952:176005. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.176005. Epub 2024 Sep 3.
Plastics are common synthetic materials that have been abundantly present as pollutants in natural ecosystems for the past few decades. Thus scientists have investigated the capability of plastic digestion by insects. Here we compare the effectiveness of biodegradation of the specific polymers: expanded polystyrene (EPS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and polypropylene (PP) altogether with above variants of plastics with microelements and vitamins by the mealworm - the larval form of the beetle Tenebrio molitor - and larvae of the beetle Zophobas morio, known as superworms. Z. morio beetles on all diets were able to complete their life cycle from larvae through pupae and imago, gaining 19 % and 22 % in mass on LDPE and EPS; 8 % and 7 % on PVC and PP. Mealworms (T. molitor) reared on polymers had minimal weight gain, gaining 2 % on LDPE and EPS, and a slight reduction in mass was observed when reared on PP and PVC. Not all specimens of T. molitor were able to pupate and transform to the adult stage. The results suggest that larvae of Z. morio can eat and degrade some types of plastic compounds more effectively than T. molitor. The changes in microbial gut communities were compared between these two species. The highest mass gain for Z. morio is associated with higher diversity in gut microbia and it was more diverse than that of T. molitor. Citrobacter freundii, a bacterium recognized for its ability to degrade long-chain polymers, linear hydrocarbons and cyclic hydrocarbons, was found in the microflora of Z. morio. The results confirm that superworms can survive on polymer feed. Moreover, this diet supplemented with microelements and vitamins increases the number of bacterial species and the diversity in the microbial gut.
塑料是常见的合成材料，在过去几十年中，它们作为污染物大量存在于自然生态系统中。因此，科学家们研究了昆虫消化塑料的能力。在这里，我们比较了特定聚合物的生物降解效果：膨胀聚苯乙烯 (EPS)、聚氯乙烯 (PVC)、低密度聚乙烯 (LDPE) 和聚丙烯 (PP)，以及添加了微量元素和维生素的上述变体塑料，通过黄粉虫 - 甲虫 T. molitor 的幼虫形式 - 和超级黄粉虫 Z. morio 的幼虫进行。在所有饮食中，Z. morio 甲虫都能够完成从幼虫到蛹再到成虫的生命周期，在 LDPE 和 EPS 上增加 19%和 22%的体重；在 PVC 和 PP 上增加 8%和 7%的体重。在聚合物上饲养的黄粉虫（T. molitor）体重增加最小，在 LDPE 和 EPS 上增加 2%，在 PP 和 PVC 上观察到体重略有减少。并非所有 T. molitor 标本都能够化蛹并转化为成虫阶段。结果表明，Z. morio 的幼虫比 T. molitor 更能有效地食用和降解某些类型的塑料化合物。比较了这两种昆虫的肠道微生物群落的变化。Z. morio 的最高体重增加与肠道微生物多样性较高有关，其多样性高于 T. molitor。在 Z. morio 的微生物群中发现了一种能够降解长链聚合物、线性烃和环状烃的细菌 - 柠檬酸杆菌。结果证实超级黄粉虫可以以聚合物饲料为食。此外，这种添加了微量元素和维生素的饮食增加了细菌种类的数量和微生物肠道的多样性。
