Mechanisms Underlying Animal Responses to Heat and Environmental Stress and Advanced Management and Nutritional Strategies for Mitigation

Heat stress and other environmental stressors exert profound effects on the physiological, metabolic, endocrine, immune, and molecular functions of animals, compromising health, welfare, reproductive performance, and productivity. Because these stressors act first and foremost on nutrient intake, digestion, absorption, and metabolic partitioning, understanding the biological mechanisms underlying animal adaptation, and the nutritional levers that can support it, has become a critical priority for sustainable animal production as climate change drives more frequent and severe extreme weather events.This Research Topic aims to bring together recent advances in the physiological, cellular, and molecular mechanisms governing animal responses to heat and environmental stress, with a particular focus on how these mechanisms intersect with nutrition and metabolism, alongside innovative nutritional and management strategies developed to enhance resilience and safeguard productivity. By integrating fundamental biological research with applied nutrition and production science, this collection seeks to advance sustainable livestock, poultry, and marine animal production while improving animal health and welfare under increasingly challenging environmental conditions.We welcome high-quality contributions examining the physiological, biochemical, molecular, and immunological responses of animals to heat and environmental stress, and, critically, how these responses relate to nutrient metabolism, requirements, and dietary intervention. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:- Thermoregulation and heat tolerance mechanisms, including their metabolic cost and links to energy and nutrient partitioning- Oxidative stress and cellular damage responses, and the role of antioxidant nutrients and metabolites in mitigation- Intestinal integrity and gut barrier function, including nutrient absorption and diet-driven protection of gut health- Carcass yield and meat quality under stress conditions, as outcomes of altered nutrient metabolism and deposition- Endocrine and metabolic adaptations to environmental challenge, including shifts in energy, protein, and lipid metabolism- Immune function and disease susceptibility, and the nutritional modulation of immunometabolism- Gut microbiota composition and function, and diet–microbiota–host metabolic interactions- Gene expression, epigenetic regulation, and molecular signalling governing metabolic responses to stress- Precision livestock management technologies for monitoring intake, metabolic status, and nutritional needs- Housing design and environmental modifications that support feed intake and metabolic balance- Nutritional interventions and feed additives to enhance stress resilience and metabolic efficiency- Genetic and breeding approaches to improve stress tolerance, including selection for metabolic and feed-efficiency traitsWe encourage submissions across all livestock, poultry, and marine species, and welcome Original Research articles, Reviews, Systematic Reviews, Short Communications, and Case Studies. Contributions integrating multiple levels of analysis, from molecular and cellular mechanisms to whole-animal and herd/flock-level nutritional and management interventions, are particularly encouraged, as are studies with clear translational relevance for improving animal resilience, nutrient use, and production sustainability under climate change. Topic editors: Mahmoud M. Azzam, Matheus Ramalho De Lima, Dong Ruan, Peng Xie Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/83530/mechanisms-underlying-animal-responses-to-heat-and-environmental-stress-and-advanced-management-and-nutritional-strategies-for-mitigation