Effect of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticle-Fortified Mulberry Leaves on Protein Profiles and Economic Traits of Bivoltine Silkworm Hybrid Bombyx mori (FC\(_1\)XFC\(_2\))

The silkworm Bombyx mori L. is a lepidopteran insect used as laboratory tool for various experiments. Being a domesticated insect, it has been reared mainly for the production of silk. The successful production of the silk not only governed by dynamic environmental factors but also affected by quality of mulberry leaf provided to silkworm. Hence, dietary nutrients are the most important factor which determine quality and quantity of silk production. An experiment was carried out to know the impact of mulberry leaf foliar spray with zinc oxide nanoparticle at varied concentrations viz., 1% ,1.5%, and 2% on protein contents as well as commercial parameters in the FC1XFC2 silkworm hybrid. The larvae reared on zinc oxide at 1.5% concentration registered higher protein contents in the haemolymph, fat body and silk gland over absolute and distilled water control. However, protein contents were relatively higher in the fat body when compared to haemolymph in all the treatments. Explicitly state that the 1.5% treatment yielded the best economic parameters such as larval weight, cocoon weight, shell weight, pupal weight, shell ratio, filament length, filament weight, denier, renditta and raw silk percentage.