Administration of Alphitobius diaperinus or Tenebrio molitor before meals transiently increases food intake through enterohormone regulation in female rats

Abstract

BACKGROUND It has been previously shown that acutely administered insect Alphitobius diaperinus protein increases food intake in rats and modifies the ex vivo enterohormone secretory profile differently than beef or almond proteins. In this study, we aimed to evaluate whether these effects could be maintained for a longer period and determine the underlying mechanisms. RESULTS We administered two different insect species to rats for 26 days and measured food intake at different time points. Both insect species increased food intake in the first week, but the effect was later lost. Glucagon‐like peptide 1 (GLP‐1) and ghrelin were measured in plasma and ex vivo, and no chronic effects on their secretion or desensitization were found. Nevertheless, digested A. diaperinus acutely modified GLP‐1 and ghrelin secretion ex vivo. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that increases in food intake could be explained by a local ghrelin reduction acting in the small intestine. © 2022 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Assessing the impact of insect protein sources on intestinal health and disease: insights from human ex vivo and rat in vivo models

“…We have investigated the effect of a sustainable source of protein on human explants and Wistar rats, focusing on intestinal immunological effects. In a previous complementary work 39 we analysed their effects in food intake and enteroho- mone modulation. Specifically, two edible insect species approved for human consumption by EFSA were analysed: Alphitobius diaperinus and Tenebrio molitor.…”

“…58 Our study does not allow support this hypothesis, because there was not a clear effect on food intake, we saw an increased food intake at the first week, but it was lost afterwards. 39 And the other challenging aspect regarding insects-derived products is their digestibility. In this respect, we have previously shown a similar digestibility of A. diaperinus to beef samples.…”

“…LPS was obtained from E. coli serotype O111.B5 (Merck Lifesciences, Madrid, Spain; Cat no: 4357765). As detailed in Miguéns-Gómez et al , 39 the treatment lasted 26 days (also shown in Fig. 2) and involved five groups as follows:…”

Intestinal Taste Receptor Expression and Its Implications for Health: An Integrative Analysis in Female Rats after Chronic Insect Supplementation

“…The intervention lasted for 26 days, and additional details of the experimental design have been described in a previous article. 33 After sacrifice, blood was centrifugated to obtain plasma, while tissue samples, including various intestinal segments (duodenum, jejunum, ileum, ascending colon, and descending colon), were rapidly removed, weighed, and frozen in liquid nitrogen before storage at −80 °C until further analysis. After thorough cleaning and removal of fat, samples from the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, ascending colon, and descending colon were demarcated according to the intestinal segment division described by Vdoviakováet al 41 All procedures were approved by the GENCAT Animal Experimentation Committee (number 11701).…”

“…Protein is essential for human nutrition as it plays an important role in the formation and repair of tissues and the proper functioning of enzymes and hormones. , Ensuring sufficient protein intake is crucial for maintaining robust immune function, supporting optimal muscle development, and protecting overall health . Abundant evidence strongly supports the postulation that insects are a source of high-quality protein, , and are considered sustainable sources of protein that require fewer land and water resources than conventional livestock production. , Based on evaluated studies on the microbiological risk of zoonosis, heavy metal contamination, and allergenicity, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has given a favorable opinion on four insects as novel foods, including two mealworms from different beetle species, Tenebrio molitor and Alphitobius diaperinus, which serve as the focus of study in this article. − These two insect species, belong to the Tenebrionidae family of the order Coleoptera, highlighting their taxonomic proximity and the nutritional composition at the larval stage is similar T.…”