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Protaetia brevitarsis is an edible insect registered as an alternative food ingredient by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Herein, we investigated the effects of Paecilomyces tenuipes on diseases reported in the larvae of edible insects with the aim of improving the productivity of larvae by promoting their development and enhancing their disease resistance. P. tenuipes exhibits several biological and pharmaceutical properties. We developed the feed for P. brevitarsis larvae with fermented oak sawdust combined with P. tenuipes–inoculated brown rice. The larval group that reared on feed combined with P. tenuipes showed a 6.5‐fold increase in weight and 5‐fold increase in survival rate against Metarhizium anisopliae relative to that seen with the controls. The nutrient composition of this feed formulation was 2.37 times higher in crude protein than in the other feed types, including the control. Our results suggest that P. tenuipes–inoculated brown rice can be used to increase larval weight and promote disease resistance, thereby potentially reducing the prevalence and severity fungal disease caused by M. anisopliae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to develop a safe and effective method for preventing Allomyrina dichotoma nudivirus (AdNV) infection in the Korean horned beetle, Allomyrina dichotoma, found on the farms in the Republic of Korea. Mulberry leaf powder was added to fermented oak sawdust to minimize mortality in AdNV‐infected A. dichotoma. Mulberry leaves were found to contain 1‐deoxynojirimycin, which has anti‐inflammatory, antiviral, and anti‐tumor effects. Based on the proposed antiviral effects of mulberry leaves, a feed of fermented sawdust combined with 1% or 5% mulberry leaf powder was fed to AdNV‐infected second or third stage A. dichotoma larvae. The larval mortality rate was recorded over 10 weeks. The second and third instar larvae that were fed with the sawdust mixture with 5% mulberry leaf powder had mortality rates of 60% and 30%, respectively. In contrast, the control group that was fed with the sawdust without mulberry leaf powder had a mortality rate of 100%. Also, we confirmed that AdNV was not detected in the experimental group that was subjected to an outdoor application test for 8 months with mulberry leaf powder treatment. A reduced mortality rate after treatment with 1% mulberry leaf powder was observed in the field application. In addition, a comparison of the control colony and mulberry leaf treated group showed a statistical difference in growth of larvae at various states, and demonstrated the efficiency of mulberry leaf powder combined with fermented sawdust for treatment of AdNV‐ infected A. dichotoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]