Effect on Intermediary Metabolism and Digestive Parameters of the High Substitution of Fishmeal with Insect Meal in Sparus aurata Feed
by
, , , ,
Dmitri Fabrikov
1, 
María del Carmen Vargas-García
1,*,
Fernando G. Barroso
1,
María José Sánchez-Muros
1
,
Sylvia María Cacua Ortíz
2,
Amalia E. Morales
3,
Gabriel Cardenete
3,
Cristina Tomás-Almenar
4 and
Federico Melenchón
4 1
CEIMar, CECOUAL-Department, Biology and Geology, University of Almería, 04120 Almería, Spain
2
GDCON Group, Environmental School, Faculty of Engineering, University of Antioquia, Medellín 050010, Colombia
3
Department Zoology, Facultad de Ciencias, Campus Fuentenueva, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
4
Agro-Technological Institute of Castilla y León, Ctra. Arévalo, s/n, 40196 Segovia, Spain
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Insects 2021, 12(11), 965; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects12110965
Submission received: 10 September 2021
/
Revised: 12 October 2021
/
Accepted: 21 October 2021
/
Published: 25 October 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insects and Their Derivatives for Human Practical Uses)
Simple Summary
The depletion of traditional protein sources and the impact this causes on the production costs of aquaculture feed make it necessary to find alternative materials that allow for the sustainability of production. Among various proposals, insects have drawn scholarly attention because of their high protein content and the efficiency of their production, both from an environmental and an economic perspective. However, nutritional changes in fish diets require further clarification regarding the effect of this new ingredient in fish performance and physiology. In this study, we evaluated the use of two insect meal species, Hermetia illucens and Tenebrio molitor, for the partial replacement of fishmeal, as well as their influence on growth indices and the gut microbiome. Although the results showed a worsening of biometric parameters and a modification of the microbial community, the impact was different depending on the insect species and their rearing conditions. Thus, specific studies for each case are recommended.
Abstract
Hermetia illucens and Tenebrio molitor were tested on account of their potential to replace fish protein in feed. Two levels of replacement for H. illucens, 30% and 50% (H30 and H50), and one for T. molitor, 50% (T50), as well as an additional diet with a modified fatty acid fraction (H50M), were investigated in relation to juvenile Sparus aurata growth indices, enzyme activities and gut microbiome. A T50 diet showed similar results to a control (C) diet, with no significant differences regarding morphological indices and minor differences for nutritional indices. Regarding the gut microbiome, H50M was the diet which showed the more similar prokaryotic community to C, which suggests that fatty acid fractions might influence the composition of the gut microbiome. Nevertheless, differences appeared to be related to a redistribution of dominant species, while changes in species affiliation were limited to minoritary species. The positive correlation between some of these minoritary species (Peptostreptococcus russellii, Streptococcus dysgalactiae and Weisella confusa) and several fish growth parameters might explain differences between control and insect diets. Deciphering such uncertainty and revealing the potential role these unusual species may play on fish performance should be addressed in future investigations.
