Nutritional diversity and bioactive potential of thirteen wild edible insects in India: implications for sustainable food and nutrition security.
6 affiliations
- 1Department of Zoology, Nagaland University, Lumami, India.
- 2Faculty of Science, Assam down town University, Guwahati, Assam, India.
- 3Department of Biochemistry, College of Basic Science and Humanities, Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand, India.
- 4Division of Entomology, IARI, New Delhi, India.
- 5Natural Products and Medicinal Chemistry Division, CSIR- Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Jammu, India.
- 6Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, India.
Abstract
Edible insects are increasingly recognized as sustainable alternative food resources owing to their high nutritional value, diverse bioactive compounds, and low environmental footprint. However, comprehensive nutritional characterization of many wild edible insect species remains limited. Therefore, this study evaluated the nutritional composition, amino acid and fatty acid profiles, bioactive properties, and multivariate nutritional relationships of 13 wild-harvested edible insect species traditionally consumed in Nagaland, India. Proximate composition, total phenolic content, antioxidant content, amino acid composition, and fatty acid profiles were determined via standard analytical methods. Spearman's correlation analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), and chord diagram visualization were employed to examine associations among nutritional variables and species-specific nutritional characteristics. Across all 13 species, protein content ranged from 18.90 to 63.91%, while the lipid content varied from 4.31 to 35.08%. The total phenolic content ranged from 2.80 to 13.89 mg GAE g-1, and the antioxidant content ranged from 2.01 to 45.11 mg AAE g-1. Eight essential and nine nonessential amino acids were detected across all species, with leucine and proline as the predominant amino acids. Fatty acid profiling revealed myristic, palmitic, stearic, palmitoleic, oleic, and linoleic acids as the major fatty acids, with monounsaturated fatty acids constituting the dominant lipid fraction (46.28-56.90 μg 100 g-1), followed by saturated (29.69-42.50 μg100 g-1) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (0.11-20.12 μg 100 g-1). Strong positive Spearman's correlations were observed between carbohydrate and phenolic content (ρ = 0.782) and carbohydrate and antioxidant content (ρ = 0.784). Phenolic and antioxidant contents were also positively correlated (ρ = 0.629). Multivariate analyses, including principal component analysis and chord diagram visualization, revealed distinct species-specific nutritional profiles. Provespa barthelemyi larvae presented relatively high concentrations of essential and nonessential amino acids and oleic acid. In contrast, Oecophylla smaragdina and Omphisa fuscidentalis were more strongly associated with elevated phenolic and antioxidant contents. Our findings demonstrate significant interspecific variation in proximate composition, amino acid and fatty acid profiles, phenolic and antioxidant content, underscoring the importance of species-specific nutritional characterization when selecting edible insects for nutritional enrichment in value-added product development and their potential contribution to sustainable food systems and future food security.
Related
- Bioactive and Molecular Characterization of Mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) Powder: Nutritional and Functional Implications for Crackers
- Phytochemical, Nutritional, Mineral and Antioxidant Characterization of Spirulina Biomass: Potential for Sustainable Aquaponic Crop Production
- Plant resilience: harnessing bioactive compounds for sustainable disease protection
- Spatiotemporal Accumulation of Four Major Bioactive Compounds in Zanthoxylum nitidum Roots: Implications for Tissue-Specific Processing and Harvesting Strategies
- Salinity-Modulated Germination and Metabolic Reprogramming in Quinoa Seedlings: Genotype-Dependent Effects on Nutritional and Bioactive Compounds and Prospects for Microgreen Valorization.
BibTeX
@article{mozhui2026nutritional,
title = {{Nutritional diversity and bioactive potential of thirteen wild edible insects in India: implications for sustainable food and nutrition security.}},
author = {Lobeno Mozhui and L N Kakati and Neha Trivedi and Aditya Kumar Tanwar and Mukesh Kumar Dhillon and Bendang Ao and Pranay Punj Pankaj and Rita Khatri Chhetri and Jasha Momo H Anal},
journal = {Frontiers in nutrition},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fnut.2026.1942254},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42952738},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Nutritional diversity and bioactive potential of thirteen wild edible insects in India: implications for sustainable food and nutrition security.
AU - Lobeno Mozhui
AU - L N Kakati
AU - Neha Trivedi
AU - Aditya Kumar Tanwar
AU - Mukesh Kumar Dhillon
AU - Bendang Ao
AU - Pranay Punj Pankaj
AU - Rita Khatri Chhetri
AU - Jasha Momo H Anal
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/14
JO - Frontiers in nutrition
DO - 10.3389/fnut.2026.1942254
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42952738
AB - Edible insects are increasingly recognized as sustainable alternative food resources owing to their high nutritional value, diverse bioactive compounds, and low environmental footprint. However, comprehensive nutritional characterization of many wild edible insect species remains limited. Therefore, this study evaluated the nutritional composition, amino acid and fatty acid profiles, bioactive properties, and multivariate nutritional relationships of 13 wild-harvested edible insect species traditionally consumed in Nagaland, India. Proximate composition, total phenolic content, antioxidant content, amino acid composition, and fatty acid profiles were determined via standard analytical methods. Spearman's correlation analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), and chord diagram visualization were employed to examine associations among nutritional variables and species-specific nutritional characteristics. Across all 13 species, protein content ranged from 18.90 to 63.91%, while the lipid content varied from 4.31 to 35.08%. The total phenolic content ranged from 2.80 to 13.89 mg GAE g-1, and the antioxidant content ranged from 2.01 to 45.11 mg AAE g-1. Eight essential and nine nonessential amino acids were detected across all species, with leucine and proline as the predominant amino acids. Fatty acid profiling revealed myristic, palmitic, stearic, palmitoleic, oleic, and linoleic acids as the major fatty acids, with monounsaturated fatty acids constituting the dominant lipid fraction (46.28-56.90 μg 100 g-1), followed by saturated (29.69-42.50 μg100 g-1) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (0.11-20.12 μg 100 g-1). Strong positive Spearman's correlations were observed between carbohydrate and phenolic content (ρ = 0.782) and carbohydrate and antioxidant content (ρ = 0.784). Phenolic and antioxidant contents were also positively correlated (ρ = 0.629). Multivariate analyses, including principal component analysis and chord diagram visualization, revealed distinct species-specific nutritional profiles. Provespa barthelemyi larvae presented relatively high concentrations of essential and nonessential amino acids and oleic acid. In contrast, Oecophylla smaragdina and Omphisa fuscidentalis were more strongly associated with elevated phenolic and antioxidant contents. Our findings demonstrate significant interspecific variation in proximate composition, amino acid and fatty acid profiles, phenolic and antioxidant content, underscoring the importance of species-specific nutritional characterization when selecting edible insects for nutritional enrichment in value-added product development and their potential contribution to sustainable food systems and future food security.
SN - 2296-861X
ER -