1. Introduction
The replacement of fishmeal (FM) by environmentally sustainable alternative protein sources has been one of the targets of aquaculture in recent decades [
1]. Plant meals have been used as the main alternative; however, insect meals have recently emerged as one of the most promising components of fish nutrition [
2,
3,
4]. This is caused by their high nutritive value—protein and fat content, anti-pathogenic and anti-inflammatory properties connected with antimicrobial peptides, and lauric acid and chitin presence—as well as their environmental sustainability due to their taking part in a circular economy and wide presence in the natural diets of many fish species [
5,
6]. Nevertheless, in the available literature, information about the effect of insect meals on growth performance, microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract, and blood biochemical parameters in salmonid fish is still scarce, and most of the research is focused only on salmon and rainbow trout [
7,
8,
9,
10,
11].
One of the key factors that has caused increased interest in research for alternative feed materials is the growing price of FM and its harmful effects on the environment [
12,
13]. However, many alternatives can lead to secondary, adverse health effects—nutritional disorders and metabolic disturbances may be caused by the use of dietary plant meal, i.e., enteritis in the distal intestine, hypertrophic mucus production, a reduction in reproductive rates, high mortality or growth depression [
14,
15]. Another important source of protein—animal byproducts, such as blood meal, meat and bone meal, as well as feather meal—is associated with legislative issues and consumer intolerance; moreover, it may contain antinutritional factors, i.e., indigestible pepsin or high levels of crude ash [
16] or cause amino acid imbalance in the diet due to high levels of proline or glycine and low tryptophan and tyrosine content [
17].
Compared with other salmonids, sea trout (
Salmo trutta m.
trutta) tolerate higher water temperatures, and may play a crucial role in aquaculture under the pressure of the progressing global warming [
18]. In the wild, they consume a wide spectrum of terrestrial and aquatic insects, which makes insect meals natural and environmentally sustainable feed components for the species [
19,
20]. The dietary inclusion of up to 25% insect meal does not affect growth performance in most fish species [
9,
21,
22,
23,
24,
25,
26,
27], and some research conducted on turbot and seabass [
28,
29] demonstrated an improvement in performance and digestibility. Moreover, some substances present in insects, such as chitin and antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), may play an important role in immune system modulation [
30,
31] and the stabilization of the homeostasis between animal and host gut microbiota [
32]. However, it must be emphasized that processing—such as drying, fat extraction or enzymatic hydrolysis [
33], as well as rearing methods and technologies, i.e., usage of different organic waste substrates [
3,
34,
35], rearing period length and environmental conditions [
36]—can also improve the nutritional value of insect meals.
In the available literature, data about the use of insect meals in sea trout diets are scarce and they can be found in only one published study described recently by our team [
37]. Moreover, information on the microbiota of this species is very limited. The effects of insects on blood plasma parameters and immunological responses have been studied only in salmon [
38]. However, the presence of insect meals may positively affect the microbiota composition and improve the gastrointestinal health of these animals [
7,
31].
Considering all the aspects mentioned above, this research aimed to evaluate the impact of mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) and superworm (Zophobas morio) larval meals hydrolyzed by bacterial enzymes and used as partial replacements for fishmeal on the blood immune responses and the microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract of sea trout compared to their growth performance and the feed efficiency.
4. Discussion
Currently, insect meals are promoted as natural alternative protein sources for fish nutrition. Although insects are a source of high-quality protein, they also provide antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) and chitin, which are considered health promoters in animal nutrition [
15,
31,
55]. Chitin and its derivative products have been demonstrated to be beneficial to fish nutrition and health [
56,
57]. AMPs are the main contributors to microbiological homeostasis in insects due to their activity against potentially pathogenic bacteria, fungi, parasites and viruses [
58]. However, it should be emphasized that FM replacement by insect meals creates the need to supplement certain amino acids, especially methionine (
Table 1).
The present study represents the first introduction of hydrolyzed
Z.
morio meal to sea trout diets. The results are characterized by a high survival rate and satisfactory growth performance and feed utilization parameters [
37,
59]. The positive effect of hydrolyzed fish protein was previously proven by a significant reduction in vertebral anomalies [
60]. Moreover, protein hydrolysate was previously observed as a positive factor in growth and disease resistance [
61]. The main mode of action that is used to explain this effect is the fact that hydrolyzed meals may contain low-molecular-weight compounds. These compounds may be related to more effective absorption, which results in improved growth performance and feed utilization [
62]. In the present study, there were no differences in the final body weight, BWG, SGR, DIR, FCR, PPV or survival rate among the treatment groups. However, the protein efficiency ratio was reduced significantly in those fish fed insect meals. These results are in agreement with those of Stadtlander et al. [
8], who showed that the inclusion of black soldier fly (BSF,
Hermetia illucens) meal in a rainbow trout diet yielded results similar to those of a control diet in terms of growth and feed conversion. However, protein utilization was decreased in the BSF group. These differences may be due to the crude protein bonding to the chitin [
63], which causes an overestimation of its content in the raw materials and the diet, causing a reduction in the PER values. It is important to emphasize that the nitrogen-to-protein conversion factor (Kp) of 6.25 generally used for proteins leads to an overestimation of protein content in insects because of the presence of nonprotein nitrogen (NPN) sources, such as chitin, nucleic acids, or phospholipids. To avoid this overestimation, Kp values of 4.76 for the protein content in whole insects and 5.60 for the protein extracts should be used [
64]. The results of the present study are in agreement with the findings of Hoffmann et al. [
37], in which no effect on average total length or body mass, SGR, FCR, or PER was observed throughout the experiment. A significant effect of insect meals on survival rate was not observed in either study; however, in the present study, the survival rate was numerically higher and close to 100%.
Among the organosomatic indices, the HSI and VSI of the fish fed with ZMD were significantly higher than those of the TMD and CON groups. Moreover, these differences were related to the higher liver lipid levels found in the fish in the ZMD treatment. This can be explained by the presence of higher levels of palmitic acid (PA) in the diet with ZMD meal than in the other diets, as this caused the enlargement of the liver due to the accumulation of fat in this organ. A similar increase in the HSI was observed in Japanese sea bass (
Lateolabrax japonicus) fed diets with relatively high levels of PA [
65]. Hoffmann et al. (2020) [
37] have shown a reduction in VSI values in sea trout fed hydrolyzed and full-fat mealworm meals compared to those fed the control diet. However, in the same study, the inclusion of
T.
molitor full-fat meal and the use of a diet with
T.
molitor hydrolyzed with a 1.0% mixture of enzymes did not lead to differences in the HSI values compared to those generated by a fishmeal-based diet [
37]. According to Huang et al. (2016) [
66], higher lipid levels in diets lead to fat storage in the visceral cavity and liver of fish; however, this accumulation may also depend on the fatty acid composition of the diet. This may be the reason for the observed differences in the effects of dietary inclusions on organosomatic indices between
T.
molitor and
Z. morio; specifically, this pattern may be due to differences in PA and saturated fatty acid (SFA) content, which was higher in the ZMD treatment group. What is more, the ratio between n-3 and n-6 fatty acids is reported as a potential modulate factor of the biochemical composition of fish liver and its structure as well as metabolism [
25,
67,
68]. The reduction in n-3 fatty acid composition in insect diets creates an imbalance in the n-3/n-6 ratio which increases the lipid deposits in the liver. The higher level of n-6 in fish products can negatively affect human health due to the pro-inflammatory properties of this acid [
69]. However, the effect of the diet on the chemical composition of fish, and, indirectly, on human health, should be considered in further studies.
In terms of the hematological parameters of the serum, there were no significant differences in the ALT concentration. However, the AST analyses showed higher values in the ZMD treatment group. These two aminotransferases are potential biomarkers of liver health [
70]. According to this information, any degradation of the liver will elevate the concentration of this enzyme. The inclusion of BSF meal in the diets of Atlantic salmon led to a decrease in the ALT concentration, while the AST concentration was not affected by diet [
11]. In the case of birds, insect meal inclusion showed no effect on these aminotransferase concentrations in barbary partridges (
Alectoris barbara) [
71] or laying hens [
72]. In contrast, the inclusion of mealworm meal in broiler chicken diets increased the concentrations of both parameters; however, the possibility of liver damage was excluded by analyses of other enzymes [
73]. Perhaps the enlargement observed in our study represents only the excessive fat accumulation due to the high content of PA mentioned previously. These results suggest that further analyses are needed to correctly describe the effects of insect use on liver physiology. According to the literature, ALP is present in the membrane of almost all animal cells, and its activity is commonly related to cellular damage [
74,
75]. The decrease in this enzyme in the ZMD group may be related to cellular homeostasis. The reduction in this compound is related to an improvement in health status in birds [
44]. In contrast, in children, higher levels of ALP are associated with bone growth [
76]; therefore, our findings may indicate that the level of ALP is correlated with numeric differences in growth rate in the TMD and CON groups, which was suggested previously by Lemieux et al. (1999) [
77] in a study conducted on Atlantic cod (
Gadus morhua). The total protein content, which is considered an indicator of nutritional status [
78], was not affected by insect meal inclusion. According to Panettieri et al. (2020) [
79] variations in the total protein content in the blood serum of fish can be a response to a number of physiological changes, i.e., tissue injury or destruction, differences in blood volume and plasma hydration and organism response to stress conditions. However, those effects were not observed in the present study. The albumin levels were significantly higher in the TMD and ZMD groups than in the control. The proteins in blood serum mainly consist of albumin and globulin. It was reported that, in adult Atlantic salmon, albumin constituted approximately 40% of the serum protein values [
80]. Previous studies have tried to establish the normal values of blood parameters in healthy Atlantic salmon, and, according to this information, the albumin levels oscillated between 18 and 24 g·L
−1; however, these values vary seasonally, and data were available for adult fish only [
81]. In common carp (
Cyprinus carpio) exposed to heavy metals at lethal and sublethal concentrations, albumin levels may be significantly decreased to meet the immediate energy demand of toxic stress [
80]. In birds, albumin has been shown to be a source of the amino acids necessary for tissue protein synthesis [
82]. The fish fed both insect meals showed significantly higher cholesterol levels than those in the CON group, while the inclusion of TM meal led to a decrease in triglycerides. According to the current literature, the inclusion of BSF meal in Atlantic salmon, rainbow trout, and Jian carp (
Cyprinus carpio var. Jian) diets did not have an impact on total cholesterol or triglyceride content [
83,
84,
85]. On the other hand, a number of papers have reported that the addition of insect meal can reduce the concentrations of total cholesterol as well as triglycerides in the blood serum of various fish species [
29,
30,
86,
87]. These results are mainly explained as a positive effect of dietary chitin, which has the ability to bind bile acids and free fatty acids [
31]. In addition, it was suggested that blood cholesterol may play an important role in the immune defense system [
88]; however, in the present study, the increase in total cholesterol concentration was not related to higher lysozyme activity, which is an important nonspecific immune system factor in fish. Insect meals inclusion did not affect the content of IgM, which contributes to innate and adaptive immunity in fish [
89]. It has been observed that mealworm meal supplementation reinforces the innate and adapted immune responses of yellow catfish (
Pelteobagrus fulvidraco) [
90]. In general, the results obtained from the hematological analyses in this study allow us to conclude that the inclusion of insect meals in sea trout diets did not negatively affect blood parameters; in particular, the fish growth performance and survival rate were not affected among any of the groups.
The hydrolyzed insect meals did not affect the gut histomorphology (i.e., the villus height, width and area and muscular thickness), which has a crucial role in nutrient absorption and gut health. The use of mealworm and BSF meal in Siberian sturgeon (
Acipenser baerii) diets did not affect villus height [
91]. Moreover, the mucosal thickness was lower in fish fed with added BSF meal; in contrast, mealworm diets increased the thickness of the muscular layer. However, in a study carried out on rainbow trout (
Oncorhynchus mykiss), the villus height decreased with mealworm and tropical house cricket (
Gryllodes sigillatus) inclusion, while an increase in villus height was observed with the addition of the Turkestan cockroach (
Blatta lateralis) [
7]. In this study, the mucosal thicknesses were lower and higher in the tropical house cricket and Turkestan cockroach treatment groups, respectively, than in the control group. Moreover, the inclusion of BSF meal in the diet decreased the prevalence of steatosis in the proximal intestine of Atlantic salmon [
38]. This variety of results arises mainly from the wide range of fish species used in the experiments as well as the use of different insect species and their level of inclusion in the feed. Moreover, the technology used in the production of the diets, the drying process, fat extraction, etc., as well as for storage, may affect the properties of insect meals as well as their effects on gut microstructures. Thus, the focus should be placed on species-specific solutions as well as on processing technologies for further studies and gut health assessments.
The abovementioned findings suggest that a crucial role is played by the GIT microbiome. The present study shows a lack of effects of insect supplementation on the total number of bacteria, which is in agreement with the findings of research carried out by Bruni et al. (2018) [
92] on rainbow trout. This result indicates that the use of partially defatted BSF meal did not affect the amount of digesta-associated bacterial communities; however, it did increase the number of mucosa-associated bacteria. This study showed that the inclusion of insect meals also had no influence on the concentration of
Bacillus spp. This genus of bacteria is well known, due to its probiotic properties and production of secondary metabolites, such as acetic acid, lactic acid and bacteriocins, and may contribute to potentially improving fish health [
93,
94]. In terms of insect meal use, it has been reported that the inclusion of mealworms at a concentration of 50% in fish diets reduced
Bacillus spp. in gilt-head bream (
Sparus aurata) and brown trout [
95]. In contrast, the inclusion of mealworm as well as BSF meal led to an increase in
Bacillus spp. in the case of Siberian sturgeon [
91]. The inclusion of
Z.
morio meal significantly decreased the concentration of
Carnobacterium spp., but, in the case of the
T.
molitor meal, a reduction in
Carnobacterium spp. as well as the
Lactobacillus group was observed. Both
Carnobacterium spp. and the
Lactobacillus group are lactic acid bacteria (LAB), which produce inhibitory substances against fish pathogens [
96]. The described effect can potentially provide an increased chance for pathogen proliferation and further microbiota imbalance. However, despite those changes, a significant decrease in the concentration of
Aeromonas spp. and
Enterococcus spp was observed in the ZM group. The reduction in
Aeromonas spp. is a positive change, as this genus includes pathogenic and opportunistic bacteria, such as
Aeromonas hydrophila and
Aeromonas salmonicida, that may produce cytotoxins, enterotoxins and endotoxins, negatively affecting intestinal barrier functions [
97,
98]. The decrease in
Enterococcus spp. can also be seen as a positive effect of ZM meal inclusion. Despite the fact that a number of bacteria belonging to this genus may be used as probiotics due to their antimicrobial properties, many of them are virulent, and this can lead to the invasion of host tissue and displacement through epithelial cells [
99]. The obtained results are in opposition to the findings of an experiment on
A.
baerii, which showed a decrease in
Carnobacterium spp., the
Lactobacillus group,
Aeromonas spp., and
Enterococcus spp. in a control treatment fishmeal [
91]. However, in a study that included BSF, mealworm, tropical house cricket, and Turkestan cockroach meal in rainbow trout diets, the concentration of LAB from
Lactobacillus sp./
Enterococcus sp. was lower in all the groups fed with insects than in the control group, which was fed fishmeal. In the same experiment, the number of
Enterobacteriaceae bacteria increased as a result of
T.
molitor inclusion. Moreover, according to Osimani et al. (2019) [
100] the microbiota of black soldier fly may have been influenced by the feeding substrates used during the rearing process of insects. The microbiological composition of insects can be connected with the rearing methods and used substrates, which affect the microbiological value of insect meals due to secondary metabolites of bacteria and bacteriocin expression. Those differences indirectly affected the bacterial community of the gastrointestinal tract of zebrafish (
Danio rerio) [
100].
All described results can be explained by the presence of chitin, which is a component of the exoskeleton of insects, shellfish, fungi, molds, and protozoa. It is considered as a factor modulating the microbiome of the gastrointestinal tract [
101]. It has been shown that a 5% addition of chitin to the diet of
Salmo salar affected individual bacterial groups by decreasing the populations of
Bacillus spp.,
Lactobacillus spp.,
Pseudomonas spp., and
Staphylococcus spp. [
102]. The antimicrobial properties of shrimp chitin and chitosan against many pathogenic microorganisms, i.e.,
Escherichia coli,
Pseudomonas aeruginosa,
Listeria monocytogenes, and
Staphylococcus aureus, have been observed [
103], which suggest the potential of usage chitin and its derivatives as prebiotic or immunostimulants [
104,
105]. The effect of dietary chitin on the composition of the gastrointestinal tract of
Gadus morhua was also demonstrated by Zhou et al. (2013) [
106]. However, it has to be emphasized that the presence of chitin in the diet can reduce feed intake and digestibility as well as nutrient absorption [
26,
28] due to possible intestinal inflammation [
25,
30]. The second explanation for the differences in microbiological composition among the groups may be the presence of AMPs. AMPs can be classified into four groups (α-helical peptides, cysteine-rich peptides, proline-rich peptides, and glycine-rich proteins), and, depending on the group they belong to, these peptides may be effective against a wide spectrum of potentially pathogenic bacteria species, i.e.,
S.
aureus,
E.
coli,
L.
monocytogenes, and
Salmonella typhimurium [
58].