Recent Advances in Nutrition and Metabolic Regulation of Fish

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, significant progress has been made in understanding the nutritional requirements and metabolic regulation of fish, driven by the growing demand for sustainable aquaculture and high-quality aquatic products. Nutrition plays a pivotal role in fish growth, health, and metabolic efficiency, yet many aspects of nutrient utilization, metabolic pathways, and their interactions remain to be explored. Advances in feed formulation, functional additives, and alternative protein sources have opened new avenues for optimizing fish nutrition, but their impacts on metabolic homeostasis, energy homeostasis, and overall physiological performance require further investigation.

This Special Issue aims to compile research (original articles and reviews) on the latest developments in fish nutrition and metabolic regulation. We encourage submissions that elucidate the mechanisms by which dietary components influence growth performance, metabolic processes, and health outcomes in fish. Studies focusing on innovative dietary strategies, metabolic biomarkers, metabolic pathways, and nutritional interventions to enhance aquaculture sustainability are particularly welcome.

Scope and information for authors:

We invite contributions addressing, but not limited to, the following topics:

• Novel insights into nutrient metabolism (proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals) and their regulatory roles in fish physiology.
• Metabolic adaptation to alternative feed ingredients (e.g., plant-based proteins, insect meal, single-cell proteins) and reduced fishmeal diets.
• Functional feed additives (probiotics, prebiotics, enzymes, phytogenics) and their effects on metabolic efficiency, gut health, and immune function.
• Nutritional programming and epigenetic regulation of metabolism in fish.
• Interplay between nutrition, metabolic hormones, and signaling pathways (e.g., insulin, mTOR, AMPK) in growth and nutrient utilization.
• Dietary strategies to mitigate metabolic disorders (e.g., fatty liver, glucose intolerance) and improve stress resilience.

We look forward to your submissions to advance the understanding of fish nutrition and metabolic regulation for sustainable aquaculture.

Dr. Hongyan Li
Dr. Yulong Gong
Dr. Wenjie Xu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fishes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• fish nutrition
• metabolic adaptation
• functional feed additives
• novel feed ingredients