phytogenics
Phytogenics are natural, non-antibiotic compounds derived from herbs, spices, and other plants that are used to promote growth, primarily as feed additives. For plant science, this field highlights the diverse bioactive secondary metabolites—such as essential oils, flavonoids, and alkaloids—that plants produce, driving research into their extraction, characterization, and functional properties. Understanding these compounds also deepens insight into plant chemical defense mechanisms and their potential applications beyond agriculture, including in human and animal health.
open_in_new WikipediaPubMed · 2026-06-26
Researchers reviewed biological alternatives to antibiotics in fish farming, finding that probiotics, prebiotics, and medicinal plant extracts can improve fish immunity and gut health — but real-world results are inconsistent due to temperature swings, system type, and formulation instability.
Thermal degradation during industrial feed pellet extrusion is identified as a primary cause of batch-to-batch inconsistency, making microencapsulation or post-coating of additives practically mandatory.
The farming system type (recirculating tanks vs. open ponds vs. biofloc systems) strictly governs how well functional additives perform, with open ponds showing the most unpredictable outcomes due to abiotic fluctuations.
Standard laboratory (in vitro) assays consistently fail to predict real-world colonization success because they cannot replicate multifactorial field stressors like fluctuating temperature and pH.