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Review
. 2023 Jan 18;11(2):245.
doi: 10.3390/microorganisms11020245.

The Use of Probiotics during Rearing of Hermetia illucens: Potential, Caveats, and Knowledge Gaps

Ellen Gorrens  1 , Antoine Lecocq  2 , Jeroen De Smet  1
Affiliations
Review

The Use of Probiotics during Rearing of Hermetia illucens: Potential, Caveats, and Knowledge Gaps

Ellen Gorrens et al. Microorganisms. .

Abstract

Given the novelty of the industrial production of the edible insects sector, research has primarily focused on the zootechnical performances of black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) in response to different substrates and rearing conditions as a basis to optimize yield and quality. However recently, research has started to focus more on the associated microbes in the larval digestive system and their substrates and the effect of manipulating the composition of these communities on insect performance as a form of microbiome engineering. Here we present an overview of the existing literature on the use of microorganisms during rearing of the BSFL to optimize the productivity of this insect. These studies have had variable outcomes and potential explanations for this variation are offered to inspire future research that might lead to a better success rate for microbiome engineering in BSFL.

Keywords: bacterial supplementation; black soldier fly; microbiome engineering; microbiota; probiotics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Overview of the set-up of an inoculation trial and a range of parameters that must be defined.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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