ARTICLE 56 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE March 2026 Nucleotides play a strategic role in functional nutrition, going beyond basic maintenance to actively enhance growth and physiological resilience across animal species. By supplementing diets with exogenous nucleotides, producers can conserve metabolic energy, support immune function, and accelerate gut and tissue development. This approach is particularly valuable during critical stress periods, such as weaning in pigs, early growth in broilers, or high-density aquaculture, optimizing both performance and animal health in modern intensive production systems. In intensive livestock and aquaculture, the nutritional paradigm is shifting. The focus has moved beyond merely meeting maintenance requirements and maximizing protein deposition toward actively optimizing physiological resilience against environmental and health challenges through functional products. At the heart of this shift are nucleotides - low-molecular-weight intracellular compounds that are rapidly gaining recognition. While traditionally categorized as non‑essential due to the existence of de novo synthesis and salvage pathways, nucleotides are now considered as conditionally essential for both terrestrial and aquatic animals.The metabolic cost of de novo nucleotide synthesis is high, requiring substantial energy and drawing heavily from the body’s amino acid pool. During periods of extreme stress - such as rapid neonatal growth, environmental fluctuations, or disease outbreaks - internal synthesis often fails to meet demand. By providing exogenous nucleotides, producers can “spare” these metabolic resources, redirecting energy and amino acids toward growth, immune function and tissue repair rather than costly de novo nucleotide assembly (Salah et al., 2019; Weaver & Kim, 2014). This article summarizes the molecular basis and production responses to supplemental nucleotides in swine, poultry, and aquaculture, while presenting a strategic framework for their application in precision nutrition. OPTIMIZING THE WEANING TRANSITION IN NURSERY PIGS The weaning transition is a high-risk period characterized by social, environmental, and dietary stressors that frequently trigger a “post-weaning growth check”. This physiological setback is driven by impaired nutrient absorption and heightened oxidative stress, both of which can increase morbidity and compromise lifetime performance. Performance evaluation and economic impact Strategic supplementation with nucleotide mixtures high in inosine 5'-monophosphate (5'-IMP) has demonstrated a clear capacity to offset this growth check. Weaver & Kim (2014) evaluated a Nucleotides in Functional Nutrition: BOOSTING GROWTH AND RESILIENCE Jisoo Tak Animal Nutrition Technical Marketer CJ Bio
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