Nutrient composition and bioaccumulation of an edible aquatic insect,Pantalasp. (Odonata: Libellulidae) from the rice field

Abstract

Numerous edible aquatic insects have unanticipated nutraceutical potential and are consumed in a variety of Thai locations. The proximate composition, amino acid, fatty acid, mineral, and heavy metal content of Pantala sp. (Odonata: Libellulidae) aquatic edible nymphs were determined using standard analytical methods in this study. Pantala sp. had a proximate protein content of 445.14±0.04%, a fat content of 4.93±0.05%, an ash content of 5.24±0.03%, a moisture content of 35.11±0.09%, and a total carbohydrate content of 9.60±0.11%. Total energy was 263.25±0.20 kcal/100 g, with fat energy accounting for 44.37±0.43 kcal/100 g. Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analysis revealed that this insect was high in phosphorus, iron, and copper for human consumption. In comparison to other edible insects studied, they were also excellent calcium sources. Agilent 7890B Gas Chromatograph (GC) analysis revealed that it contains 236.67 mg/100g of omega-3 and 523.32 mg/100g of omega-6. While the amino acids examined using High Performance liquid Chromatography contained all essential amino acids. ICP-OES was used to determine the levels of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and arsenic (As). Pantala sp. had the highest concentration of As (average = 2.827 ± 0.289 mg kg -1 ), followed by Cd (0.164 ± 0.007 mg kg -1 ) and Pb (0.158 ± 0.015 mg kg -1 ). Although the insects have nutraceutical potential, they also have toxic heavy metals in trace amounts, with the exception of As. This work could serve as a nutritional reference for local consumers interested in entomophagy.

Edible dragonflies and damselflies (order Odonata) as human food – A comprehensive review

“…As an example, the nymph of dragonfly Pantala sp. (Figure 1a) is not only rich in protein, fat, carbohydrate and ash, but it is also excellent in phosphorus, iron, copper, calcium and contains all essential amino acids for human consumption (Maneechan and Prommi, 2021). Similar to that, the nymph of damselfly Lestes praemorsus was also found to have good amount of protein and rich with different kinds of essential acid amino (Zhao, 2021).…”

“…The orders of insects that are most often consumed globally include Blattodea (cockroaches and termites), Coleoptera (beetles), Diptera (flies), Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies), Orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets and locusts), Hemiptera (true bugs), Hymenoptera (bees, ants, and wasps), Lepidoptera (butterflies, caterpillars and moths), and Mantodea (mantis) (Ordoñez-Araque et al, 2022;Zhou et al, 2022). According to studies, dragonflies and damselflies are consumed worldwide in northern Italy (Fontaneto et al, 2011), India (Mozhui et al, 2020), China (Feng et al, 2018), Thailand (Maneechan and Prommi, 2021), Indonesia, Venezuela, Japan, Ecuador, Mexico, Madagascar, Myanmar, Vietnam, USA and South Korea (Fontaneto et al, 2011). Dragonfly nymphs from six to seven different species can be eaten, from which Anax parthenope (Maneechan and Prommi, 2021), Lestes praemorsa, Gomphus cuneatus, and Crocothemis servilia are the prevalent species (Chen et al 2009).…”

“…According to studies, dragonflies and damselflies are consumed worldwide in northern Italy (Fontaneto et al, 2011), India (Mozhui et al, 2020), China (Feng et al, 2018), Thailand (Maneechan and Prommi, 2021), Indonesia, Venezuela, Japan, Ecuador, Mexico, Madagascar, Myanmar, Vietnam, USA and South Korea (Fontaneto et al, 2011). Dragonfly nymphs from six to seven different species can be eaten, from which Anax parthenope (Maneechan and Prommi, 2021), Lestes praemorsa, Gomphus cuneatus, and Crocothemis servilia are the prevalent species (Chen et al 2009). Although dragonflies are consumed in both their adult and nymphal stages, nymphs are preferred.…”

“…Data on the protein content (Table 1) showed that Sympetrum species contains the highest amount of protein (76.75%) (Narzari and Sarmah, 2017), whereas Pantala sp. contains the lowest (45.14%) (Maneechan and Prommi, 2021).…”

Edible Insects for Humans and Animals: Nutritional Composition and an Option for Mitigating Environmental Damage

“…(-): means undetectable or not found. Information adapted and modified from: Aguilar (2021); Akhtar and Isman (2018); Finke (2015); Fleta (2018); Guil-Guerrero et al (2018); Hlongwane, Slotow, and Munyai (2020); Kouřimská and Adámková (2016); Maneechan and Prommi (2021); Meyer-Rochow, Gahukar, Ghosh, and Jung (2021); Ordoñez-Araque and Egas-Montenegro (2021); Prósper (2020); Rumpold and Schlüter (2015) and Séré et al (2021) [ 4 , 14 , 15 , 17 , 27 , 28 , 31 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 ].…”