In the alkaline environment, the protein partially unfolds and is cut by other proteins, forming a toxin that paralyzes the insect's digestive system and forms holes in the gut wall. The insect stops eating within a few hours and eventually starves.
This passage describes how a specific protein, when exposed to an alkaline environment, unfolds, is broken down by other proteins, creating a toxin that disrupts the insect's digestive system, causing paralysis and ultimately leading to starvation.