Microbial Community Dynamics during Rearing of Black Soldier Fly Larvae (Hermetia illucens) and Impact on Exploitation Potential

• Published in: Applied and environmental microbiology 2018-05, Vol.84 (9), p.e02722-17
• Main Authors: De Smet, Jeroen, Wynants, Enya, Cos, Paul, Van Campenhout, Leen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animal feed; Animal Feed - analysis; Animal Feed - microbiology; Animals; Biotechnology; Chemical industry; Diptera - growth & development; Diptera - microbiology; Emergence; Exploitation; Food security; Hermetia illucens; Immunity; Insects; Larva - microbiology; Larvae; Microbiology; Microbiomes; Microbiota; Microorganisms; Minireview; Molecular chains; Optimization; Organic chemistry; Proteins; Substrates; Sustainability; Sustainable agriculture
• ISSN: 0099-2240; 1098-5336
• DOI: 10.1128/AEM.02722-17

The need to increase sustainability in agriculture, to ensure food security for the future generations, is leading to the emergence of industrial rearing facilities for insects. One promising species being industrially reared as an alternative protein source for animal feed and as a raw material for the chemical industry is the black soldier fly ( ). However, scientific knowledge toward the optimization of the productivity for this insect is scarce. One knowledge gap concerns the impact of the microbial community associated with on the performance and health of this insect. In this review, the first steps in the characterization of the microbiota in and the analysis of substrate-dependent dynamics in its composition are summarized and discussed. Furthermore, this review zooms in on the interactions between microorganisms and the insect during development. Finally, attention is paid to how the microbiome research can lead to alternative valorization strategies for , such as (i) the manipulation of the microbiota to optimize insect biomass production and (ii) the exploitation of the -microbiota interplay for the discovery of new enzymes and novel antimicrobial strategies based on immunity using either the whole organism or its molecules. The next decade promises to be extremely interesting for this research field and will see an emergence of the microbiological optimization of as a sustainable insect for industrial rearing and the exploitation of its microbiome for novel biotechnological applications.