IUCRC Phase I: Mississippi State University: Center for Environmental Sustainability through Insect Farming (CEIF)

工业大学昆虫养殖环境可持续性合作研究中心(IUCRC)是第一个通过昆虫养殖实现环境可持续性的工业大学合作研究中心，旨在支持超越现有传统蛋白质来源的动物营养和人类食品行业。按照目前的人口增长速度，传统农业将面临满足蛋白质需求的巨大压力。昆虫养殖可以增加动物和人类的食物供应。此外，在生产高价值蛋白质的同时修复农业废物的可持续和具有成本效益的方法对生态系统和农业的长期健康至关重要。选定的昆虫可以利用农业生态系统或城市环境中产生的废物，并将其转化为蛋白质和堆肥。工业界可以利用该中心创造的知识，在获得适当的监管批准的情况下，进一步探索将昆虫蛋白用作人类和动物的食物。因此，昆虫养殖及其创新可以代表一种循环经济，减少土地和/或水的使用，并减少温室气体排放。昆虫养殖还可能缓解海洋和农业资源产生蛋白质用于食物和动物饲料的压力。通过昆虫养殖实现环境可持续发展中心(CEIF)由三个站点组成(印第安纳大学-普渡大学印第安纳波利斯[IUPUI]、德克萨斯A&A；M农业生命研究[TAMU]和密西西比州立大学[MSU])，每个站点专门从事特定的研究领域。这些网站将合作提供业界期望的对昆虫系统的遗传学/基因组学的基础研究，评估性状的遗传力，并确定对性状的遗传贡献，从而为未来的优化和大规模生产做准备。通过这项研究，新的知识和技术将填补与家畜和水产养殖生产以及供人类消费的昆虫生产有关的关键科学和工业空白。实验室和现场实验还将利用尖端技术，利用微生物学、工程学、化学、食品营养、生理学和生物学方面的跨学科专业知识。MSU网站的目的是：1)调查昆虫微生物群，以优化和评估它们在增加昆虫营养、作为饲料的营养和废物转化方面的效用；2)进行实验，以确定益生菌添加剂对昆虫营养、饲料营养和废物转化的影响；3)使用经典和分子微生物学来制定和实施微生物病原体的质量保证(预防)和控制(检测)管理计划。密歇根州立大学将与其他网站合作，整合这三个网站的研究成果，IUPUI和TAMU将重点放在遗传学、昆虫生物学、工程学和饲料试验上。这三个地点都将与工业生产的菌株以及内部开发的菌株合作，作为优化大规模生产的一种手段。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Industry University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) for Environmental Sustainability through Insect Farming (CEIF) represents a first of its kind IUCRC to support the animal nutrition and human food industries that go beyond conventional protein sources currently available. At current rates of population growth, traditional agriculture will be under intense pressure to meet protein demands. Insect farming can increase the food supply for both animals and humans. In addition, sustainable and cost effective methods for remediating agricultural waste while producing high value protein is essential to the long term health of ecosystems and agriculture. Select insects can take waste, such as that produced in agro-ecosystems or urban environments, and convert it into protein and compost. Industry can utilize the knowledge created in the center to further explore the use of insect protein, with suitable regulatory approvals, as food for humans and animals. Thus, insect-farming and its innovations could represent a circular economy, which reduces land and/or water use and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Insect farming may also relieve the stress imposed on marine and agricultural resources to generate protein for food and animal feed. The Center for Environmental Sustainability through Insect Farming (CEIF) comprises of three sites (Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis [IUPUI], Texas A&M AgriLife Research [TAMU], and Mississippi State University [MSU]), with each site specializing in a specific area of research. The sites will work collaboratively to deliver industry-desired, fundamental research into the genetics/genomics of the insect systems, evaluating the heritability of traits, and determining the genetic contributions to traits, allowing for future optimization and mass production. Through this research, new knowledge and technologies will fill critical scientific and industrial gaps related to insect farming for livestock and aquaculture production as well as insect production for human consumption. Laboratory and field-based experiments will also engage interdisciplinary expertise in microbiology, engineering, chemistry, food nutrition, physiology, and biology with cutting edge technologies. The purpose of the MSU site is to: 1) Investigate insect microbiomes to optimize and evaluate their utility for increased insect nutrition, nutrition as feed, and waste conversion; 2) Conduct experiments to determine the effects of probiotic supplementation on insect nutrition, feed nutrition, and waste conversion; 3) Use classical and molecular microbiology to develop and implement management plans for quality assurance (prevention) and control (detection) of microbial pathogens. MSU will work with the other sites to integrate research thrusts across the three sites with IUPUI and TAMU focusing on genetics, insect biology, engineering, and feed trials. All three sites will work with strains produced by industry as well as strains developed internally as a means to optimize mass production.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.