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Fate of polychlorobiphenyls in the insect Tenebrio molitor: consequences for further use as food and feed

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 May 2022

Christelle Planche ,
Frédéric Mercier ,
Johanna Rivas ,
Magaly Angénieux ,
Hanli Wang ,
Benjamin Calmont ,
Sébastien Crépieux ,
Jérémy Ratel  and
Erwan Engel
Christelle Planche
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
Frédéric Mercier
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
Johanna Rivas
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
Magaly Angénieux
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
Hanli Wang
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
Benjamin Calmont
Affiliation:
SHNAO, Société d'histoire naturelle Alcided'Orbigny, F-63170 Aubière,
Sébastien Crépieux
Affiliation:
INVERS, F-63720 Saint-Ignat, France
Jérémy Ratel
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
Erwan Engel
Affiliation:
MASS group, UR QuaPA, INRAE, F-63122 Saint Genès Champanelle
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Abstract

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Background/Objectives

Given the world population increase, there is a growing need to find alternative and sustainable protein sources for food and feed. Edible insects are an interesting solution with low greenhouse gas emissions, high feed conversion efficiency, low land use, and their ability to transform low value organic co-products into high value protein products(Reference van Huis1). In counterpart, one of the potential risks associated with their consumption is the chemical contamination. In urban areas, this chemical risk may be linked to emission sources of persistent organic pollutants (POPs)(Reference Saini and Harner2) such as polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), dioxins (PCDD/Fs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)…inducing their ubiquitous presence at trace levels in food supply(Reference Guo and Pan3). In this context, this study explored the ability of yellow mealworm (Tenebrio molitor), the most widely bred and traded insect species in Europe(Reference Bordiean and Krzyżaniak4), to bioaccumulate PCBs from their feeding substrate.

Methods

Tenebrio molitor larvae were reared during 20 days in a temperature and humidity-controlled incubator and fed with wheat bran artificially contaminated with PCBs at a concentration of 0.67 ppb, 4 ppb or 24.4 ppb (n = 3 for each concentration). The larvae PCB content was then measured based on an extraction method inspired by Planche et al.(Reference Planche and Ratel5) and an analysis by gaz chromatography coupled with an micro-Electron Capture Detector (μECD).

Results

Whatever the PCB contamination level, no significant impact was observed on the larval growth. The bioaccumulation factors (BAF (%) = 100 × concentration of PCBs in larvae / concentration of PCBs in wheat bran) obtained with fresh larvae are between 77% and 82%. With dried larvae, the most common commercially available form, the bioaccumulation factors ranged between 216% and 233%.

Discussion / Conclusion

This study highlights the ability of Tenebrio molitor to accumulate PCBs from their diet during rearing and the significant impact of the drying process on the bioaccumulation factors. This demonstrates the importance of considering the quality of the substrates used for farming insects as food and feed in terms of content in chemical contaminants including POPs like PCBs.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

References

van Huis, A (2016) Proc Nutr Soc 75, 294–305.10.1017/S0029665116000069CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Saini, A, Harner, T et al. (2020) Environ Pollut 267, 115416.10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115416CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guo, W, Pan, B et al. (2019) Int J Environ Res Public Health 16, 4361.10.3390/ijerph16224361CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bordiean, A, Krzyżaniak, M et al. (2020) Agriculture 10, 233.10.3390/agriculture10060233CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Planche, C, Ratel, J et al. (2015) J Chromatogr A1392, 74–81.10.1016/j.chroma.2015.02.054CrossRefGoogle Scholar