Phytogenic as In-Feed Antimicrobial Growth Promoters

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past several decades, the main strategy to control intestinal pathogens in animals has been the application of in-feed antimicrobial growth promoters (AGPs). The emergence and transmission of antibiotic resistance in pathogenic bacteria has been linked to animal diet, and this has led to the ban of AGPs in animal feed in many countries. This scenario has challenged the livestock industry to explore safer alternative products in order to control these pathogens, which otherwise brings heavy economic losses to the animal industry. In this context, the most promising and feasible tool to control these pathogens appears to be the application of natural plant extracts with antimicrobial properties, leading to an improvement in the performance, product quality, and productivity of animals.

The utilization of plant extracts in traditional medicine has long been reported to be a safe, effective, and natural remedy for several diseases. During the last two decades, extensive research has identified a plethora of phytogenics with a broad spectrum of activity against several infectious fungi and bacteria in humans and animals. So far, the bioactive components of some plant extracts have been characterized and are available as commercial products; however many plant bioactive components are still unexplored, and research delineating the mechanisms behind their antimicrobial action is scarce. Thus, there is a need to gather more scientific information on the effects of these unexplored phytogenics in controlling gut pathogenic microbiota and improving the overall performances, product quality, and production characteristics of the animals, as well as the mode of action of these plant extracts. This Special Issue intends to cover advances in exploring new phytogenics and their potentials in improving the animal performance and production characteristics as well as exploring the mechanistic basis of antimicrobial action of phytogenics which is applied as in-feed antimicrobial growth promoters.

Dr. Santi Devi Upadhaya
Dr. Xinjian Lei
Guest Editors

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• antimicrobial growth promoter
• phytogenics
• pathogenic microorganisms
• animals
• performance
• product quality