The Role of Bioactive Nutrients in Animal Nutrition: Molecular, Computational, and Field-Based Advancements

Bioactivity of a nutrient is understood as its ability to provide tangible health benefits that go beyond its basic nutritional value. Decades of development on the science of animal nutrition have allowed for remarkably precise estimations of the dietary needs of livestock animals; as our fundamental understanding of nutrients shifts to focus on bioactivity, molecular nutrition represents a new enticing frontier for animal scientists.

This Research Topic aims to capture recent developments in the field of molecular nutrition, with a crucial focus on the bioactive roles of nutrients. Primarily, we aim to elucidate how nutrients interact with the genome and consequently modulate gene and protein expression, as well as metabolite production. Genome-independent effects are also of interest for this special topic, provided that the bioactivity of the studied nutrient is demonstrated (i.e., a mechanism is elucidated or speculated).

Authors are welcome to submit manuscripts of any scope (i.e., molecular assay-based studies, computational models, and/or field studies), as long as the focus is on the role of bioactive compounds in animal nutrition. Manuscripts that attempt to elucidate a hypothesized mechanism, pathway or cascade are strongly preferred. Field-based studies can focus on quantifying the implications of the inclusion of a bioactive compound in the diet of livestock, as it pertains to productive parameters or animal health/welfare.

Keywords: Nutrigenomics, animal nutrition, molecular nutrition, nutrient-gene interaction, bioactive nutrients, nutraceuticals

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.