Mycotoxin-Induced Injury of Livestock and Poultry: Mechanisms, Biomarkers, and Nutritional Interventions

Mycotoxins, such as aflatoxins, deoxynivalenol, and zearalenone, are pervasive "invisible pollutants" in animal feed, posing a significant threat to the sustainable development of the livestock and poultry industry. Their impact extends beyond reduced growth performance and immunosuppression to include contamination of animal-derived products, thereby challenging global food safety and public health. Despite decades of research, critical gaps remain in our understanding of the complex, multi-organ injury caused by these toxins, limiting the development of precise and effective intervention strategies. This Research Topic aims to build a comprehensive framework to address these challenges by integrating advanced methodologies from toxicology, nutrition physiology, genomics, and chronobiology. A key innovative theme within this collection will be the exploration of the cross-talk between mycotoxin toxicity and the circadian clock system. Circadian rhythm genes (e.g., Bmal1, Clock, Per) are master regulators of detoxification enzyme activity, oxidative stress balance, immune responses, and cellular repair across all organs. Disruption of these rhythms may be a core, yet underexplored, mechanism by which mycotoxins induce systemic damage.We welcome contributions that advance the field across three core objectives: Mechanistic Elucidation: Investigating the fundamental pathways of mycotoxin-induced injury, including oxidative stress, apoptosis, and immune dysregulation in various organs (liver, kidney, intestine, reproductive tract). We particularly encourage studies examining how mycotoxins disrupt core circadian clocks and their downstream regulatory networks governing xenobiotic metabolism and cellular homeostasis. Biomarker Discovery: Identifying and validating novel biomarkers for the early, subclinical diagnosis of multi-organ toxicity. This includes exploring the potential of circulating clock genes, proteins, and metabolites as predictive indicators of organ damage before overt pathology appears. Intervention Development: Developing and testing novel nutritional interventions, feed additives (e.g., binders, biotransforming agents, antioxidants), and management strategies to mitigate mycotoxin toxicity. Submissions exploring "chrono-nutrition" approaches—such as timed antioxidant or detoxifier supplementation to align with peak endogenous detoxification activity—are highly encouraged. By bridging fundamental research and practical applications, this collection aims to translate new insights into precision tools for livestock farming. The goal is to enhance animal health and welfare, improve production efficiency and food safety, and ultimately contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals of "Zero Hunger" and "Good Health and Well-being." We welcome submissions of Original Research, Reviews, Systematic Reviews, and Methodological articles. Studies that employ cutting-edge approaches such as transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and in vivo imaging to illuminate the "mycotoxin-circadian axis" in different organ systems are particularly encouraged. The goal of this collection is to translate fundamental insights into practical tools for precision livestock farming, thereby improving animal welfare, production efficiency, and food safety, and contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals of "Zero Hunger" and "Good Health and Well-being". Topic editors: Demin Cai, Haoyu Liu, In Ho Kim Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79173/mycotoxin-induced-injury-of-livestock-and-poultry-mechanisms-biomarkers-and-nutritional-interventions