Chitin and other problems with insect based food

Z...

The Living Force
FOTCM Member
This video is very interesting. I did extensive search for any papers supporting these claims and strangely enough i found numerous research papers supporting the use of Chitinase in cancer and joint repair and also its use in nano medicine. Only ONE paper that really makes lots of sense

I posted about it on Facebook and overnight likes from the post disappeared which tells me thiey ate trying hard to cover this up,
So far i ve been using Google scholar if anyone knows of better tool to look for research papers please let me know.

 
I have a side hobby growing and selling mealworms for feeding lizards, fish, chickens etc. They eat fresh veg and bran but I have no desire what so ever to eat them myself. I am on the fence about humans eating them as some cultures do eat them regularly. Not as a replacement for a nice piece of steak tho! 🐄

This site if very pro bug and has a few linked articles : 4 Main Health Benefits of Chitin, Based on Science | Crickster . Would love to see more evidence of the studied detrimental effects to humans as well. I have concerns working with them and potentially developing an allergy to chitin.
 
I have a side hobby growing and selling mealworms for feeding lizards, fish, chickens etc. They eat fresh veg and bran but I have no desire what so ever to eat them myself. I am on the fence about humans eating them as some cultures do eat them regularly. Not as a replacement for a nice piece of steak tho! 🐄

This site if very pro bug and has a few linked articles : 4 Main Health Benefits of Chitin, Based on Science | Crickster . Would love to see more evidence of the studied detrimental effects to humans as well. I have concerns working with them and potentially developing an allergy to chitin.

Interesting, it reminds me than when I used to keep reptiles mealworms were cautioned against especially for young lizards. It was the indigestible chitin specifically that was thought to be an 'impaction' risk. There was also thought to be far less useable protein in this prey source compared to other insects. To be clear, I'm talking about the larvae of Tenebrio molitor.

So I probably won't be eating something which probably isn't even especially nutritious for lizards.
 
There are two studies that suggest an immune reaction to chitin (in animal models):

This site if very pro bug and has a few linked articles : 4 Main Health Benefits of Chitin, Based on Science | Crickster . Would love to see more evidence of the studied detrimental effects to humans as well. I have concerns working with them and potentially developing an allergy to chitin.
This is interesting:
1. May Boost Healthy Gut Bacteria

(...)

According to a study published by Scientific Reports, 20 participants were supplementing 25 grams of cricket powder over a 14 day period.
Can anyone observe significant changes when on diet for 14 days? Also, 25 grams of cricket powder doesn't seem to be a lot, so it looks like a study done to justify marketing.
2. Can reduce inflammation

(...)

In a study conducted in 2013, on animal models, the authors concluded:

“Chitin-microparticles, significantly suppress the development of inflammation by modulating cytokine balance and microbial environment in colon.” [6]

Meaning, chitin microparticles can prevent the development of inflammation in the colon.
Studies that I listed (from 2018 and 2021), suggest otherwise...

From what I read, chitosan (an active form of chitin without acyl residue) could be beneficial for humans, but certainly not natural chitin.
 
I've asked about that "14-day study" on some Patreon page that is publishing study reviews by a microbiologist, and got the answer:
The most important is the molecular processes inside the cells within the so-called innate immune response by generally called Pattern Recognition Receptors - these processes are responsible for generating, among others, interferon and pro-inflammatory factors, and natural chitin activates RPP-type receptors.

Thus, there may be no or slight changes in the level of antibodies to natural chitin, but this does not mean that the body will not develop chronic inflammation, mainly in the intestines but also in the lungs where it comes into contact with chitin, e.g. fungi.

Finally, the repeatedly administered antigen (here chitin) may eventually generate the so-called spontaneous reshuffling of TCR receptors already on immune system cells (T and B lymphocytes) and the development of an autoimmune reaction.

In my opinion, producers will write what will boost marketing because they know that the general agenda is to put insects in people's food. As we wrote, the insect protein purified 100% from chitin, as well as modified chitin, e.g. chitosan, may even be beneficial for humans, but natural chitin will ultimately be disastrous, especially in populations with already weakened immune systems via genomic preparations.
 
So those who got the shot seem to be the main target here. That's good to know, so it's definitely mandatory to stay away from it...
Well, you can take his (that microbiologist guy) answer with a grain of salt, because he was dealing with the subject of genetic injections, and is probably very biased on that point. But I guess we can consider individuals boosted with n-th booster most probably immunocompromised, so adding a constant exposure to yet another antigen will do even more harm to them.
 
Very interesting article got published two days ago, that describes how chitin could interact with human organisms on a cellular level. Keep in mind that this is the opinion of an anonymous microbiologist. Automatic translation from Polish to English:
Chitin
Worms - New Food for a New Man in the New Deal! It sounds like an advertising slogan, but it does not bode well for humanity's bright future.

The mainstream media is pumping up the topic of “food” made from insects. The topic is not new at all, because it's been more or less 2 years since "the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) issued a positive opinion on the mealworm larva as a new food product" , but apparently the higher forces decided that it was time to leave to people with the idea of changing their diet, because our current habits are burdened with too large a carbon footprint, and as we know (or at least it should) we are on the eve of introducing a carbon passport, which is another way to implement prohibitions and orders in the awareness of society, which will have to accept for a better life… for everyone.

Food products made from insects are promoted as modern and ecological, but is it healthy? For the last 2 years, an exam for the societies of developed countries on how one should take care of one's health has been taking place - in my opinion, it was a concert, but we would like to live in a society of conscious people, which is why we publish information for you on chitin (which is made of, among others, insect shells), sent by our Reader, which are worth getting acquainted with even if you are not a scientist.

We give the floor to the author of the next part of the article…


Below are just some observations and conclusions drawn from publications studying chitin and its derivatives.

Medium-sized chitin (40-70 µm) stimulates macrophage IL-17A production and IL-17A receptor expression through a pathway that involves TLR-2 and MyD88, resulting in acute inflammation.

Pathways that included TLR-2, dectin-1 and nuclear factor NF-κB mediated the effects of medium-sized chitin. In contrast, the effects of small-sized chitin were mediated by pathways that involved the mannose receptor and splenic tyrosine kinase (Syk).

Chitin contains size-dependent pathogen-associated molecular patterns that stimulate TLR-2, dectin-1, and the mannose receptor; which differentially activate NF-κB and Syk; and which stimulate the production of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines.

Recently, studies have shown that 40-70 µm chitin is a multifaceted adjuvant for Th2 (bad), Th1 and Th17 (bad) responses.

Chitin elicits different host responses depending on its size, the nature of the chitin, methods of preparation, time and route of administration.

When 5 mg of chitin was injected intraperitoneally every 2 weeks for a period of 12 weeks, the mice were phenotypically normal, but histologically, many macrophages were observed with hyperplasia in the mesentery, and polykaryocyte-like cells (!!!) with foreign bodies in the spleen.

When 5 mg of chitosan was injected intraperitoneally, the body weight of the mice decreased significantly, and in the fifth week the mice were inactive. Conversely, the administration of 5% chitosan in a casein (protein, e.g. cheese) diet resulted in a decrease in the body weight of the mice, as well as a reduction in the number of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in the normal flora of the digestive tract.

Chitosan promotes cancer progression and generation of stem cell characteristics in colon cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Chitin is a key ingredient in insects, fungi and house dust mites. Lower life forms are equipped with chitinases to defend themselves against chitin-containing pathogens. Humans also express chitinases, but also chitinase-like proteins that modulate immune responses. In particular, elevated levels of the chitinase-like protein YKL-40 are associated with severe asthma and cystic fibrosis.


Chitinases and chitinase-like proteins (CLPs) belong to the family of glycosidic hydrolases 18 (GH18). Chitinases are expressed in mammals and lower organisms and facilitate the degradation of chitin, hence they function as host defense enzymes.

Gene duplication and mutations resulting in loss of enzymatic function of active chitinases have resulted in the expression of a diverse range of CLPs in different species.

CLPs are genes increasingly associated with inflammation and tissue remodeling, not only in mammals but also in distant species.

CLPs have important regulatory functions in innate immune response pathways in host defense, tissue injury/repair, but also have extensive implications in the pathology of disease-related processes such as asthma.



The glycoside hydrolase family 18 (GH18) proteins include enzymatically active chitinases and enzymatically inactive chitinase-like proteins (CLPs). Chitinases hydrolyze the glycosidic bonds of chitin - a polysaccharide found as a structural component of the cell wall of fungi and bacteria and inside the exoskeleton of crustaceans, arthropods and helminths.

In insects, chitin is an integral part of the cuticle and the expression of chitinases is necessary for successful moulting and reorganization of the chitin-extracellular matrix architecture (insect tissues are attached from the inside to the "shell" and for the insect to be able to grow while going through the moult - chitinases must remodel the woven and its connection with the chitin shell).

CLP, on the other hand, is a diverse family of proteins often expressed in a species-specific manner and arose from duplication of the chitinase genes by mutation and loss of function of the chitinolytic domain (the domain that catalyzes the breakdown of chitin). CLPs are strongly, but not exclusively, associated with T-helper type 2 (Th2-type response) inflammatory pathologies, which include helminth infection, asthma, and fibrosis.

CLPs are evolving at an extremely rapid rate that seems to be beyond the scope of natural genetic drift, and rather indicative of positive selection forces driving their genetic variability.

This is generally a concern for molecular biologists, but not for physicians, who are largely ignorant of evolution at the molecular level. The point is that such positive pressure on adaptive evolution appears under the influence of a factor, which in the case of e.g. COVID vaccines is mmRNA, and in the case of CLP proteins, or rather their genes - chitin. The constant presence of chitin in food may lead to the acceleration of the evolution of genes encoding CLP proteins, which in turn may intensify pathological processes in which these proteins are involved, such as asthma.

All mammalian CLPs are extensively associated with immunomodulatory activities important in both combating pathogens and inducing host pathology. CLP expression is eg detected in arthritis and osteoarthritis and in inflammation of the airways. Increased levels of CLP expression are also found in infections, fibrosis, multiple sclerosis and various lung diseases. CLPs are also expressed in neutrophils and their expression is increased upon stimulation with IL-4/IL-13 and IFNγ.


Currently, research is aimed at using CLPs as indicators of pathology and/or stage of disease because the molecular mechanisms mediated by CLP proteins - which have been discovered so far - support a variety of functions of CLPs, ranging from changes in collagen synthesis/degradation to regulation of cytokine levels pro-inflammatory substances important for the course of infection.

CLP expression is strongly upregulated in the lungs of asthmatic patients and in mouse models of allergic airway inflammation. Most studies have focused on CLPs as modulators of the adaptive Th2 response during inflammation.

However, CLP expression also positively correlates with neutrophil- and IL-17-induced inflammation in asthma patients, suggesting that CLPs may also be important for non-Th2 asthma phenotypes, which are often further strongly associated with innate immune responses. This is further supported by the observation that CLPs stimulate the secretion of the cytokine IL-1β towards the production of interleukin IL-17A in innate γδ T cells, which results in the accumulation of neutrophils (e.g. in the lungs).

This effect of CLP on IL-1β probably occurs through the activation of the inflammasome [ similarly, protein S activates the inflammasome, resulting in, for example, the death of blood stem cells. In addition, severe COVID-19 is associated with the so-called "cytokine storm", which is a dramatic increase in inflammatory cytokines/chemokines especially IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α] . Additionally, CLP levels positively correlate with IL-1β expression after brain injury.

Increased CLP levels are not solely attributed to pathogen-induced injury, as CLPs are also upregulated during sterile injuries, suggesting a fundamental role for CLPs in tissue repair. In general, research shows that CLPs play a dual role in tissue injury and tissue repair. On the one hand, they can promote rapid lung regeneration by influencing the production of Th2 cytokines during N. brasiliensis infection, and on the other hand, they can contribute to the generation of severe lung damage.

Biologically, this would mean that their resultant role depends on the presence - perhaps temporary, related to the time of action - of a stimulating factor, which may be chitin. In other words, its low presence in the tissue would promote the positive effects of CLP, and its increased prolonged presence would promote the negative effects of CLP - however, this is only speculation at this stage of CLP knowledge.


CLPs can also affect the Extra-Cellular Matrix (ECM) through direct interactions with ECM molecules, including collagen and heparan sulfate proteo-glycan. CLPs are also mitogenic for fibroblasts - they induce skin cell division. CLPs can induce cellular responses directly leading to increased collagen production and, consequently, stimulation of the formation of collagen fibroses, additionally inhibiting collagen degradation, which correlates, for example, with fibrotic disorders of the lungs and liver.

More importantly, CLP also regulates the so-called Endothelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) – a process that involves a phenotypic change of epithelial cells towards a fibroblast-like mesenchymal cell that is highly migratory and secretes increased amounts of ECM (extracellular matrix) proteins such as eg collagen. EMT is not only a critical mechanism for cancer metastasis but has also been shown to be a key factor in airway remodeling in asthma.

There are also other molecular mechanisms in which chitin and its modified derivatives present in food may be involved, and which may significantly affect human pathophysiology, especially in terms of interaction with pathogens. Perhaps we will write about them another time.

Now it is necessary to realize that the constant presence of chitin in the human body as a result of its daily consumption in staple foods has never taken place before, especially in the Western world - thus the effects are unpredictable and political decisions approving such a state of affairs should be treated as another experiment politicians on people's health and lives.

The current policy has a great chance to lead to a drastic dysregulation of the entire molecular homeostasis of the cell in humans and the disappearance of ecological barriers between pathogens. Biologically, there can be only one consequence of this - a sharp increase in many diseases and deaths.
 
Very interesting article got published two days ago, that describes how chitin could interact with human organisms on a cellular level. Keep in mind that this is the opinion of an anonymous microbiologist. Automatic translation from Polish to English:

Thank you - good find - pretty much in line with what was already suggested.
 
Not for me: "Eat ze bugs!" :D

Should You Start Chowing Down on Chitin?​

Story at a glance:
  • Chitin is a polysaccharide found in the exoskeleton of most arthropods, which include insects, spiders, scorpions and centipedes, as well as crabs, crayfish and lobsters
  • An animal study suggests that when chitin is consumed, it activates the immune system, which in turn may reduce weight gain and body fat while increasing resistance to obesity
  • Chitin is a highly inflammatory and potentially allergy-inducing compound
  • It’s possible chitin is involved in triggering “crab asthma” that’s prevalent among workers in the shellfish processing industry
  • Building up chitin could be part of the global plan steering the population away from nutritious animal foods and toward insects as a primary protein source
 

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