The edible leaf chafer beetles Anomala sp, Phyllophaga sp and Lepidiota sp. are appreciated as traditional cuisine in many parts of the world. In the northeast Indian tribal region, it has been documented that the consumption of these beetles as food by the Apatani community of northeast India is incorporated sustainably to manage it in the Kiwi agroecosystem since these species are also known pests; thus, locally, they provide some positive outputs. An extensive array of chemicals, both volatiles and non-volatiles, is usually present in the host plant leaves, some of which might get sequestrated by insects and can have many varied functions. Further, through the practice of entomophagy, these can ultimately reach the human system, thus requiring validation of its dietary practices via research. Extraction and Chromatographic analysis of the insect and its host plant revealed the presence of various bioactive compounds with nutritional value and therapeutic characteristics. Furthermore, these compounds are assessed via in-vivo, in-vitro and in-silico studies to validate their potential, which will be unravelled here.

Nending Muni is pursuing her PhD at Rajiv Gandhi University, India, under Prof. Jharna Chakravorty. Prof. Chakravorty’s lab has been working on edible insects for a decade for potential future sustainable nutritional and therapeutic sources. Under her supervision, Ms Muni is also researching edible scarab beetles for their nutraceutical assessment, therapeutic assessment and chemical ecology. She was nominated as an INSA History of Science Associate fellow and has also been awarded the silver medal at the 6th IAZ Conference for Young Scientists. She has seven publications so far.