Analysis of amino acids in Macrotermes gilvus Hagen termite colonies (Blattodea: Termitidae)

Sources of nutrients, especially essential amino acids that can not be produced by the body are needed. Several types of termites have been consumed by the community, one of which is Macrotermes gilvus. The purpose of this study was to analyze amino acids in Macrotermes gilvus soil termite colonies. The instrument used for analysis was High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The results showed that most amino acids originated from the neotene Macrotermes gilvus compared to the queen and king. The termite queen has a higher amino acid content than the king. The dominant amino acid in queens, kings and neotenes is serine, while the very limited amino acid is methionine. Based on this, Macrotermes gilvus soil termite colonies can be used as an alternative source of protein that rice of essential amino acid.