# Multilevel Assessment of the Antioxidant Potential of Two Edible Insects Following In Vitro Simulated Gastrointestinal Digestion

## TL;DR

This study shows that digestion increases the antioxidant activity of two edible insects, with each species affecting different genes in immune cells.

## Contribution

The study provides a multilevel assessment of how digestion affects antioxidant activity and gene expression in edible insects.

## Key findings

- Digested insect samples showed higher antioxidant capacity than undigested ones.
- A. diaperinus digestion products increased expression of antioxidant-related genes like Nrf2 and SOD1.
- T. molitor digestion products mainly affected NFKB1 and RELA genes.

## Abstract

In recent years, insect-derived peptides have attracted attention for their potential biological activities, particularly antioxidant properties. This study assessed the antioxidant activity of two widely consumed edible insects, T. molitor and A. diaperinus larvae, using cell-free and cell-based approaches. Whole lyophilized larvae, digestion products from the oral, gastric, and intestinal phases, as well as the <3 kDa permeate fraction (D-P3) derived from the intestinal digestion phase, were evaluated using biochemical antioxidant assays. Overall, digested samples exhibited higher antioxidant capacity than their undigested counterparts. At the cellular level, treatment of LPS-stimulated, PMA-differentiated THP-1 macrophages with A. diaperinus D-P3 was associated with increased mRNA expression of genes related to antioxidant defense, including NFE2-like bZIP transcription factor 2 (NFE2L2, also known as Nrf2), glutathione-disulfide reductase (GSR), superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), and catalase (CAT), whereas T. molitor D-P3 preferentially modulated nuclear factor kappa B p50 subunit (NFKB1) and nuclear factor kappa B p65 subunit (RELA). Overall, these findings indicate that gastrointestinal digestion enhances the bioaccessibility of antioxidant components in both edible insect species while revealing species-specific transcriptional responses under in vitro inflammatory conditions. This multilevel assessment provides mechanistic insight into the antioxidant-related biological activity of digestion-derived insect peptides and supports their further investigation as functional ingredients in food and feed systems.