ijms-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Molecular Research in Animal Nutrition

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Bioactives and Nutraceuticals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 January 2026 | Viewed by 378

Special Issue Editor


E-Mail
Guest Editor
College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
Interests: epigenetic regulation of immune responses in livestock; gut microbiota and host interaction in animal nutrition and health; early-life intestinal inflammation and metabolic programming

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Recent advances in animal nutrition science have highlighted the crucial role of molecular mechanisms in mediating nutrient–host interactions that shape animal growth, health, and disease resistance. This Special Issue, “Molecular Research in Animal Nutrition”, will explore how nutrients, dietary components, and feed additives modulate physiological and immunological responses through epigenetic regulation, microbiome composition, and cellular signaling pathways.

We welcome original research articles and reviews focusing on the molecular and mechanistic basis behind animal nutrition, particularly in the following areas:

  1. Nutrient–gene interaction and epigenetic regulation (e.g., DNA methylation, histone modifications, and RNA methylation, such as m⁶A) in animal development and immune responses;
  2. The interplay between dietary factors and the gut microbiota in regulating host metabolism and intestinal health;
  3. The nutritional modulation of innate immunity and inflammatory responses through cellular signaling pathways;
  4. Functional feed additives and bioactive metabolites that drive molecular adaptations in livestock species;
  5. The integration of multi-omics approaches (e.g., transcriptomics, metabolomics, epigenomics, and the microbiome) in deciphering nutrition-related mechanisms in animals.

This Special Issue will provide a platform to showcase cutting-edge research that bridges nutrition, molecular biology, immunology, and microbiome science, contributing to precision feeding and sustainable animal production.

Dr. Jie Fu
Guest Editor

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. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. 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.

Keywords

  • animal nutrition
  • animal immunity
  • epigenetics
  • m6A methylation
  • gut microbiota
  • host–microbiome interaction
  • metabolic reprogramming

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (1 paper)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

22 pages, 2264 KB  
Article
Effects of Oligofructose Supplementation on Growth Performance, Antioxidant Capacity, Immunity, and Intestinal Health in Growing Rabbits
by Liwen Qin, Chunlong Xiao, Menglei Shi, Lu He, Yifei Du, Lifan Lin, Zekai Zhang, Yichen Lin, Yue Feng, Qinghua Liu and Changchuan Ye
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(17), 8694; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26178694 (registering DOI) - 6 Sep 2025
Abstract
This study aims to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with different concentrations of oligofructose (FOS) on growth performance, antioxidant capacity, immunity, and intestinal microbial composition in growing rabbits. One hundred female Dehua black rabbits (34 d of age) were randomly assigned to [...] Read more.
This study aims to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with different concentrations of oligofructose (FOS) on growth performance, antioxidant capacity, immunity, and intestinal microbial composition in growing rabbits. One hundred female Dehua black rabbits (34 d of age) were randomly assigned to four groups (CON, FOS-1, FOS-2, and FOS-3), with twenty-five rabbits in each group. The CON group received only a basal diet, while the FOS-1/FOS-2/FOS-3 group received the diet supplemented with 0.3%/0.6%/0.9% FOS, respectively. The trial period lasted for 72 days. Our results revealed that FOS supplementation could improve the growing performance of rabbits and decrease the feed/gain ratio. FOS significantly enhanced serum antioxidant enzyme (SOD) and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) while reducing malondialdehyde (MDA). The levels of plasmic immunoglobulin (IgG, IgA, and IgM) and intestinal immune factors (IL-1α, IL-2, and sIgA) were significantly improved with the FOS supplement. Additionally, FOS can improve intestinal morphology and enhance the activity of intestinal enzymes, including cellulase, lipase, and protease. Furthermore, FOS supplementation influenced the composition of intestinal microflora by increasing the abundance of Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group (barrier-enhancing) and Monoglobus (fiber-degrading). In conclusion, the addition of FOS has a positive impact on the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, immunity, and intestinal health of growing rabbits. The optimal dietary addition for rabbits was identified as 0.6% oligofructose. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Research in Animal Nutrition)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop