Intestinal Morphometry, Enzymatic and Microbial Activity in Laying Hens Fed Different Levels of a Hermetia illucens Larvae Meal and Toxic Elements Content of the Insect Meal and Diets

Giuseppe Moniello,Andrea Ariano,Valentina Panettieri,Georges Hassoun,Lorella Severino,Francesca Tulli,Basilio Randazzo,Maria Messina,Nadia Musco,Nicola Addeo,Fulvia Bovera,Giovanni Piccolo,Ike Olivotto

doi:10.3390/ani9030086

Abstract

Simple SummaryRecently, several studies have focused on the use of insect larvae meal as an alternative to soybean meal in poultry diets. In this regard, it is crucial to understand all the possible aspects related to the chemical-nutritional characteristics, the effects on the animals’ health and welfare, and the safety of different insect meals. This study aimed to evaluate volatile fatty acids production in the caeca, the intestinal morphometry, and the brush border enzymatic activity of hens fed different levels of Hermetia illucens (Linnaeus) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) larvae meal for 24 weeks. The research also aimed to contribute to the knowledge of the concentration of toxic elements in insect meals. Overall, the insect meal inclusion affected the small intestine morphometry, the enzymatic activity, and the caecal microbial activity. The soybean meal group showed the highest intestinal functionality, while a compensatory mechanism, probably mediated by the chitin, led to a positive increase of volatile fatty acids and butyrate in the 50% protein replacement diet with potential positive effects on gut healthiness. The levels of toxic elements in the diets and insect meal were lower than the maximum levels of heavy metals set by the EU Commission for the feed.To evaluate the effects of feeding a Hermetia illucens (HI) larvae meal on the different intestinal traits of hens, and to determine the toxic elements’ concentration in the insect meal and diets, 162 hens were randomly allotted to three groups. The control received a corn-soybean meal-based diet (SBM); the HI25 and HI50 groups received two diets in which the 25% and 50% of the dietary protein were replaced by the HI protein, respectively. The duodenal and jejunal villi height and villi/crypt were higher (p < 0.01) in the SBM than in the HI groups. The ileal villi height was higher (p < 0.05) in the SBM and HI25 groups than the HI50. The HI50 group exhibited a lower duodenal maltase activity. The intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP) activity linearly decreased in the duodenum and jejunum as the dietary insect meal inclusion increased. The HI50 group had a higher acetate and butyrate level than the SBM. The levels of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As) in the diets and insect meal were lower than the maximum values established by the EU Commission. The 25% soybean protein replacement with Hermetia illucens larvae meal in the diet of laying hens was more suitable and closer to the optimal level than 50%.

Highlights

The EU approval for the use of the insect meals in poultry nutrition is “not so distant in the future”, and the approval by the EU Member States could be possible during the first quarter of 2019 [1,2]
The aim of the present research was to evaluate the effect of the inclusion of a partially defatted meal from Hermetia illucens (HI) larvae in the diet on the volatile fatty acids (VFAs) production in the caeca, intestinal morphometry, and brush border enzymatic activity of 40 weeks old layers
A recent study showed that the concentration of many minerals in black soldier fly larvae increased linearly as the level of the correspondent mineral in the growing substrate increased, while manganese remained stable in the larvae, despite varying concentrations in the media [17]

Summary

Introduction

The EU approval for the use of the insect meals in poultry nutrition is “not so distant in the future”, and the approval by the EU Member States could be possible during the first quarter of 2019 [1,2]. It is mandatory to understand all the possible aspects related to the chemical-nutritional characteristics, the effects on the animal health and welfare, the impact of feed and food safety of the different meals deriving from insects. This goal is not easy to reach as some characteristics can be modified according to the species and, within the species, in relation to the harvesting stage, the growth substrate, etc. An important aspect concerning the use of insect meal as a feed ingredient, related to human and animal health, is the possible accumulation of mineral elements in the insect body during the growing cycle. Data on the transfer of chemical contaminants from different substrates to the insects are very limited [16]

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