Insect Models in Nutrition Research

Abstract

Insects are the most diverse organisms on earth, accounting for ~80% of all animals. They are valuable as model organisms, particularly in the context of genetics, development, behavior, neurobiology and evolutionary biology. Compared to other laboratory animals, insects are advantageous because they are inexpensive to house and breed in large numbers, making them suitable for high-throughput testing. They also have a short life cycle, facilitating the analysis of generational effects, and they fulfil the 3R principle (replacement, reduction and refinement). Many insect genomes have now been sequenced, highlighting their genetic and physiological similarities with humans. These factors also make insects favorable as whole-animal high-throughput models in nutritional research. In this review, we discuss the impact of insect models in nutritional science, focusing on studies investigating the role of nutrition in metabolic diseases and aging/longevity. We also consider food toxicology and the use of insects to study the gut microbiome. The benefits of insects as models to study the relationship between nutrition and biological markers of fitness and longevity can be exploited to improve human health.

Human‐based new approach methodologies to accelerate advances in nutrition research

“…have been traditionally used as a gold standard in nutrition research and for human safety studies (Baker, 2008). Some other nonmammalian models have been increasingly used in nutritional studies, such as birds (Baxter et al, 2018), zebrafish (Ulloa et al, 2011), insects (e.g., Drosophila melanogaster, Apis mellifera; Tonk-Rügen et al, 2022), and the worm Caenorhabditis elegans (Y. Wang et al, 2022).…”

“…have been traditionally used as a gold standard in nutrition research and for human safety studies (Baker, 2008). Some other nonmammalian models have been increasingly used in nutritional studies, such as birds (Baxter et al., 2018), zebrafish (Ulloa et al., 2011), insects (e.g., Drosophila melanogaster , Apis mellifera ; Tonk‐Rügen et al., 2022), and the worm Caenorhabditis elegans (Y. Wang et al., 2022). Animals have been used and still are being used for several studies including nutrient–nutrient interactions, assessment of bioavailability (Šimoliūnas et al., 2019) and the safety margins of nutrients (Baker, 2008), tolerance and safety tests of food and food additives (EFSA, 2008; Lin et al., 1992), host–diet–microbiota interactions (Rangan et al., 2019), studies of the impact of diet on health and disease, and the effect of potential therapeutic/dietary interventions (Yue Guo et al., 2018).…”

The Effects of Artificial Diets on the Expression of Molecular Marker Genes Related to Honey Bee Health

“…Honey bees produce many products for human health and play a crucial ecological role in both natural ecosystems and agriculture. Similar to other insects, honey bees present both an alternative source of protein for humans and a convenient animal model for fields from genetics to neurobiology, especially for the early stage preclinical research of pathogen infection experiments, innate immune system research, and nutrition effects [1,2].…”

“…These benefits of honey bees are available because insects and humans possess some equivalent organs and similar biological systems, including the evolutionarily conserved gut and digestive system [1]. Malnutrition, overfeeding, high-sugar diet (HSD), and highfat diet (HFD) effects on metabolism in a Drosophila model were described [3][4][5], with a focus on their effects on lifespan, health, age-related diseases, and aging [6][7][8].…”

“…To address these gaps, we conducted a field experiment on overwintered Apis mellifera ligustica honey bees in early spring, when natural sources of nectar and pollen are scarce. Therefore, this study aims to examine the impacts of different types of pollen substitution diets (Diet 1, Diet 2, and Control-N), the commercial diet supplement Megabee, and bee bread (Control-P) based on several aspects: (1) the relationship between water-soluble protein content in diets and protein digestion in honey bees (protein quantification); (2) the transformation of dietary protein into body protein content, measured separately in the head, thorax, and abdomen of honey bees (protein quantification and metabolomics); (3) the impact of these diets on the spring dynamics of DWV and SBV relative expression ratio (transcriptomic analysis); and (4) the effects of the diets on immunity, including the expression of genes related to ROS enzymes (SOD1, SOD2, and Trxr1), innate immunity pathways (Toll: spz and dorsal 1; Imd: PGRP-LC and relish; and JAK/STAT: domeless), antimicrobial peptide genes (AMPs: defensin 2 and apid 1), and development and nutrition-related genes (vg, JHAMT, and TOR1) in overwintered individual honey bees (transcriptomic analysis). This study ultimately aims to identify standard molecular effects and nutrient markers.…”