• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.537-542
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• 2019

Proteins were isolated from four species of edible insects, Bombyx mori, B; Tenebrio molitor, T; Protaetia brevitarsis, P; and Gryllus bimaculatus, G, and their properties were analyzed and compared with those of whey proteins. The yield of the protein isolated from raw materials was 65.0-75.0%. Among three branched chain amino acids (BCAA), the amounts of valine in all the insects were similar to that of the whey protein. The BCAA content was 16.8 and 16.4% in G and T, respectively. The total polyphenolic content and the antioxidant activity of the insect proteins were significantly higher than those of the whey proteins. Based on the sensory test of the protein powder, the whey protein could be replaced by 25% of the isolated protein from the insects, but the taste and flavor needs to be improved. Although the BCAA content of insect proteins was lower than that of the whey protein (by 73-76%), their application could be useful because of high polyphenolic content and the anti-oxidative activity.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.702-707
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• 2017

Insects and their extract have been traditionally used as medicinal resources in Asia. Recently, Gryllus bimaculatus and the larva of Tenebrio molitor, Protaetia brevitarsis, and Allomyrina dichotoma were enlisted as general food ingredients by Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. As the interest in these insects is growing, the detailed investigation is needed for the standardization of suitable and safe rearing techniques. This survey was conducted via personal interviews about edible insect rearing farms in Korea. The basic feed is fermented oak sawdust for P. brevitarsis and A. dichotoma and wheat bran for T. molitor. The various feed additives are blended with each farm's own recipes. The overall growth condition, including sawdust fermentation method, feeding period, and rearing density, varies among the investigated farms. It seems that weight of last instar larva was correlated with the rearing density and duration of the larval period. The heavy metal contents were analyzed after 48 hour starvation and they were very small amount or not detected in investigated insects. We believe that the present data will contribute to develop and standardize the safe rearing techniques of edible insects in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.94-102
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• 2022

Defatted soybean, larvae of brown mealworm (Tenebrio molitor), and powdered pupae of silkworm (Bombyx mori) were fermented in solid and liquid forms using Aspergillus oryzae and Bacillus subtilis. The protein degradation rate (NDR) through solid fermentation was the highest in the fermented soybean control sample (54.69±6.54%), followed by silkworm pupae (34.82±5.99%) and brown mealworm larvae (30.54±3.80%). When these edible insects were fermented in liquid form, solid extraction yield was 37.73-46.88%, and protein yield was 47.47-63.02%. NDR of fermented liquid form products increased to 58.90, 52.62, and 50.13% for soybean, brown mealworm larvae, and silkworm pupae, respectively. SDS-PAGE of the liquid fermented products confirmed that microbial fermentation decomposed higher-molecular-weight proteins into small polypeptides. In vitro digestibility of liquid forms of edible insects increased by 1.26 to 1.53 times after fermentation. The protein solubility, foaming ability, and foam stability of liquid-fermented edible insects all tended to increase through fermentation.