This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary insect powder supplementation as a protein source on plasma amino acid profiles, intestinal amino acid transport and sensing in a piglet model. A total of 144 weanling piglets were randomly assigned to four experimental diets for two phases (Days 1-28 and Days 29-56), to assess the effects on amino acid profiles and transportation in the segments of the intestine. The groups were basal diet (control), control diet plus Tenebrio molitor (TM), control diet plus Musca domestica larvae (MDL) and control diet plus Zophobas morio (ZM). The plasma free amino acid levels were stable comparable among treatments, except that the lysine level was significantly reduced by dietary MDL and ZM supplementation in the first phase (p < 0.05). In the 1st phase, the sensitivity of intestinal segments to the regulation of the amino acid level by insect powder supplementation follows sequence: colon > ileum > jejunum, while the order switched to jejunum > colon > ileum in the 2nd phase. The relative RNA expressions of mitogen-activated protein 4 kinase 3 (MAP4K3), sodium dependent neutral amino acid transporter2 (SNAT2), the transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 1 (TRPV1) and taste 1 receptor member 1/3 (T1R3) in the segments of the intestine were affected by different dietary insect powder supplementation. G protein-coupled receptor family C group 6 member A (GPRC6A) level in the jejunal and colonic mucosa was upregulated by MDL supplementation (p < 0.05). These results indicated that dietary insects improved the metabolism of the amino acid in the prophase (the 1st phase) through regulating the sensing gene and mTOR signal pathway in intestinal mucosa by targeting different receptors. The finding demonstrates that the insect powder is a potentially promising source for protein deposition.

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