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Starvation Effects on Superworms: Implications in Identifying Plastic-Degrading Genes and Microbes
Summary
Researchers found that starvation triggers significant stress responses in superworms (Zophobas morio) that alter both their transcriptome and gut microbiome, identifying 42 differentially expressed genes and demonstrating that starved insects should be used as controls in plastic degradation studies to accurately distinguish plastic-degrading genes and microorganisms from starvation-response effects.
Abstract To address the challenge of plastic waste, plastic-degrading insects have been gaining considerable attention as promising solutions. This study revealed that subjecting superworms to starvation triggers a stress response, altering both the transcriptome and microbiome. Stress responses have been observed in insects even when they ingest plastics; hence, incorporating starved insects as a control group can augment the precision of selecting genes and microorganisms implicated in plastic degradation. We used Starved and Bran-fed groups as controls and identified 42 genes and five bacteria that exhibited a common increase in superworms consuming polyethylene. This approach has the potential to improve the accuracy of identifying the genetic and microbial factors linked to plastic biodegradation.