Lynnoo Kim (Appleby College)

Jaewoo Choi (The Stony Brook School)

Seo Yoon Jeong (Kent School)

Lynnoo Kim (Appleby College)

Lynnoo Kim (Appleby College)

Jaewoo Choi (The Stony Brook School)

Seo Yoon Jeong (Kent School)

Concerns about food sustainability have prompted a growing interest in edible insects. This attention stems from their substantial nutritional value along with the economic and environmental advantages, offering solutions to food insecurity. This paper explores proteins and lipids found in Teleogryllus emma and Gryllus bimaculatus, the two most common crickets in South Korea, which hold promise as alternative sources of food to traditional options. Cricket lipids were analyzed using the FT-ICR mass spectrometer and identified by cross-referencing with Lipid Maps. Additionally, their protein sources were identified through Tims TOF Pro MS. Results of FT-ICR showed abundant phospholipids in the digestive system of both species: Teleogryllus emma and Gryllus bimaculatus. With rich amounts of sphingolipids, Gryllus bimaculatus makes a noteworthy food source. From the analysis of Tims TOF Pro MS, two proteins were deemed significant: troponin T, which was highly manifested in Gryllus bimaculatus, and Hexamerin-like protein 2, which was better expressed in Teleogryllus emma. As a whole, the data demonstrates the crickets’ potential as an alternative lipid and protein source.