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Call for papersNutrition and food science

Call for Papers: Natural Bioactives for a Healthy and Sustainable Diet (Nutrients)

Nutrients is running a Special Issue inviting original research and reviews on the nutritional relevance and functional roles of bioactive compounds from natural sources in human health, bridging food chemistry, nutritional biochemistry and clinical nutrition. This guide sets out topic areas consistent with that scope, fit checks, contribution types editors tend to value and practical steps for submitting before the 25 January 2027 deadline.

Pubrica InsightsEditorial team, reviewed by a subject specialist
Deadline
25 January 2027
Last checked
10 November 2026
Reading time
5 min
Sources
1
Submit through the official call

Key dates

Manuscript deadline
25 January 2027
Details last checked
10 November 2026
Open the official call

About the journal

Journal
Nutrients
Publisher
MDPI
Call type
Call for papers
Scope
Original research and reviews on the nutritional relevance and functional roles of bioactive compounds from natural sources in human health, bridging food chemistry, nutritional biochemistry and clinical nutrition.
Guest editors
Listed on the official collection page
Access and fees
Open access; an article processing charge normally applies on acceptance
Originality
Original work, not under review elsewhere; confirm on the official page

Topics consistent with the call

  • Characterisation of polyphenols, carotenoids and other bioactives in foods and by-products
  • Bioavailability, metabolism and gut microbiota interactions of dietary bioactives
  • Mechanistic studies of bioactive compounds in inflammation, metabolism and oxidative stress
  • Human intervention trials of foods or extracts rich in natural bioactives
  • Sustainable sources of bioactives, including plant-based foods and food waste valorisation
  • Functional foods and dietary patterns that deliver bioactive compounds

Based on the published scope; the full list of themes is on the official call page.

Is your work a fit? Check before you write

  1. Address bioactive compounds from natural sources and their relevance to human nutrition or health.
  2. Characterise the compounds or extracts and report doses and sources clearly.
  3. Connect food chemistry or mechanistic findings to nutritional or clinical relevance.
  4. Follow an appropriate reporting guideline and confirm article types and charges on the official call page.
  5. Submit a complete, co-author-approved manuscript before 25 January 2027.

Why This Call Is a Priority Now

Interest in natural bioactive compounds reflects both their potential health effects and the drive towards diets that are healthier and more sustainable. Moving from laboratory findings to dietary recommendations requires evidence on composition, bioavailability, mechanisms and effects in people. A Special Issue that spans food chemistry, nutritional biochemistry and clinical nutrition gives authors an open access venue to connect these levels of evidence for a readership in nutrition science.

Who Should Submit

Academic backgrounds

  • Nutrition and dietetics
  • Food science and food chemistry
  • Nutritional biochemistry
  • Clinical nutrition
  • Pharmacognosy

Institutions and sectors

  • Universities and nutrition research institutes
  • Food and nutraceutical industry
  • Agricultural and food research organisations
  • Clinical research centres

Article types commonly published in Nutrients

  • See the journal’s article types

What the Editors Typically Value

  1. Human studies that test whether bioactive-rich foods or extracts produce measurable health effects.
  2. Research on bioavailability and metabolism that clarifies how bioactives act in the body.
  3. Studies linking sustainable food sources or by-products to nutritionally relevant bioactive content.
  4. Reviews that critically integrate chemical, mechanistic and clinical evidence on a class of bioactives.

Paper Ideas You Could Develop

Valorising fruit by-productsA study characterising polyphenols in a fruit processing by-product and testing their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity in cell models.
Polyphenol-rich diet trialA randomised controlled trial of a polyphenol-rich dietary intervention on markers of cardiometabolic health in adults.
Bioactives and the gut microbiotaA review of how dietary fibre and polyphenols interact with the gut microbiota to influence metabolic outcomes.

Your Plan to the Deadline

A suggested schedule working back from 25 January 2027. Adjust it to the stage your work has reached.

  1. By 11 Dec 2026

    Open the official collection page and the Nutrients submission guidelines; confirm the scope, article types and guest editors.

  2. By 25 Dec 2026

    Write a one-paragraph statement of your research question, design and the contribution your paper makes to the collection.

  3. By 4 Jan 2027

    Complete the analysis and agree the key findings, figures and tables with your co-authors.

  4. By 15 Jan 2027

    Draft the full manuscript to the Nutrients article type and the relevant reporting guideline.

  5. By 20 Jan 2027

    Circulate the draft to co-authors and an independent reader; revise for clarity, accuracy and completeness.

  6. By 23 Jan 2027

    Complete final checks: formatting, references, declarations, data availability statement and cover letter.

  7. By 25 Jan 2027

    Submit through the journal’s online system, selecting the collection, after re-checking the official call page.

What you gain from publishing here

  • Publication in Nutrients, reaching readers working on this topic.
  • A themed collection that groups your paper with related work.
  • Editorial and peer feedback that can strengthen the work, whatever the decision.
  • A peer-reviewed output for your CV, thesis or grant reporting.

What happens after you submit

  1. Submission: upload through the Nutrients online system and select the collection.
  2. Editorial screening: the editors check fit with the collection; papers outside its scope may be returned without review.
  3. Peer review: suitable papers are sent to reviewers under the journal’s review model.
  4. Revision and decision: respond to each reviewer comment and keep a record of the changes.
  5. Production: accepted papers move to proofs and open access publication, with the article processing charge set out by the publisher.

What the Collection Is Looking For

The Special Issue seeks original research and reviews on bioactive compounds from natural sources and their role in human health, bridging food chemistry, nutritional biochemistry and clinical nutrition. In keeping with the journal’s remit, work that links composition and mechanism with nutritional relevance, and that considers healthy and sustainable diets, is likely to be of interest. Authors should confirm accepted article types and article processing charges on the official call page.

Read the call itselfThis guide summarises the call. Open the official collection page before you plan a submission, and record the date you checked it and the guest editors listed.Open the official call

Expert help

How Pubrica Can Help With This Submission

Pubrica’s subject specialists can review, write, edit, format and prepare your manuscript for this call, planned back from the deadline. You remain the author of your work.

Pre-submission peer reviewAn expert review of the manuscript against the call and the journal’s requirements. Manuscript editingSubject-specialist editing for clarity, accuracy and consistency. Journal formattingFormatting of the manuscript, references, figures and tables to the journal’s guidelines. BiostatisticsStatistical analysis and review of results. Cover letterA cover letter that explains how the manuscript fits the call. Journal submissionPreparation of submission files and completion of the online submission.
Go to the official call

FAQs

Questions Authors Ask

The published deadline is 25 January 2027. Collections can close early or be extended, so confirm the date on the official call page before you plan your submission.

The guest editors are listed on the official collection page. Check their research interests, as they help to judge whether your manuscript fits the collection.

In vitro work may fit if it is clearly linked to nutritional relevance, such as realistic doses or food sources. Authors should check the official call page and the journal’s guidance on preclinical studies before submitting.

Access model: Open access. Check the journal’s fees page for any article processing charge before you submit.

Sources

  1. Nutrients. (2026). Natural Bioactives for a Healthy and Sustainable Diet [Collection call for papers]. MDPI. Retrieved 10 November 2026, from https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrients/special_issues/4T5GIZMDA4

How to cite this page

Pubrica Insights. (2026). Call for Papers: Natural Bioactives for a Healthy and Sustainable Diet (Nutrients). Pubrica. https://pubrica.com/insights/calls-and-conferences/natural-bioactives-for-a-healthy-and-sustainable-diet/

  • Bioactive compounds
  • Sustainable diet
  • Functional foods
  • Polyphenols
  • Clinical nutrition

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Natural Bioactives for a Healthy and Sustainable Diet (Nutrients)Deadline 25 January 2027

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