Developmental and Early-Life Programming in Ruminants: Nutritional, Metabolic, Epigenetic, and Phenotypic Perspectives

Developmental programming has gained considerable attention in animal sciences because early conditions can shape how individuals grow, adapt, and perform throughout life. Findings from human and rodent studies show that maternal, paternal, and neonatal nutrition may influence epigenetic and metabolic pathways, altering developmental trajectories in a lasting way. In ruminant production systems, interest in how prenatal and early-life phases affect later performance has increased rapidly, supported by new evidence linking these periods to changes in tissue development, endocrine regulation, and metabolic flexibility. Understanding how early nutritional or environmental stimuli act on molecular and physiological processes, and how these responses translate into observable phenotypes, is essential for advancing research on growth, reproduction, and productivity in beef, dairy, and small ruminants. This Research Topic aims to integrate these different perspectives and developmental stages.

The goal of this Research Topic is to explore how early developmental stages influence long-term biological and productive outcomes in ruminants, using evidence from nutrition, metabolism, physiology, and molecular biology. Although interest in developmental programming has grown, many questions remain about how maternal, paternal, and early-life stimuli shape endocrine regulation, tissue development, metabolic responses, and phenotypic expression in beef, dairy, and small ruminants. A central aim is to encourage studies that connect early stimuli with measurable outcomes, through omics-based analyses, physiological assessments, or performance traits. By integrating contributions from different production systems and developmental phases, this Research Topic seeks to identify biological markers, regulatory pathways, and mechanisms that explain variation in growth, reproductive function, and productive efficiency. The Topic also aims to highlight practical implications, supporting more informed nutritional and management strategies across ruminant production systems.

We invite original research articles, reviews, mini reviews, and brief research reports on how early developmental stages shape biological and productive outcomes in ruminants. Contributions may examine prenatal, periconceptional, or early postnatal periods and explore how nutrition, environmental conditions, and physiological cues influence tissue formation, metabolic regulation, endocrine activity, and phenotypes. Studies combining omics data with physiological or metabolic measurements or performance records are highly relevant. Research on maternal, paternal, or early-life influences in beef, dairy, or small ruminant systems also fits within this collection. Submissions identifying biological markers, developmental pathways, or practical implications for nutrition and management are welcome, as are manuscripts connecting early-life stimuli to long-term patterns of growth, reproduction, or productivity. The Research Topic focuses on ruminant systems but also encompasses studies in other animal species when these offer comparative or mechanistic insights relevant to ruminant biology.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Conceptual Analysis
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Conceptual Analysis
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review

Keywords: Developmental programming, Early-life nutrition, Metabolism, Epigenetics, Phenotypic outcomes

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.