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Comprehensive review evaluates TCM's role in enhancing reproduction efficiency in animals, suggesting pathways for application.
Animal reproductive efficiency underpins food security, yet conventional management relies on hormones and antibiotics, raising concerns over residues and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers a multi-target alternative, but a critical synthesis linking its mechanisms to species-specific veterinary application is lacking. This review systematically evaluates the therapeutic potential of TCM in animal reproduction and identifies translational barriers. A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) up to October 2025. Fifteen key medicinal plants were classified into tonifying, blood-activating and heat-clearing categories, with bioactive compounds, target tissues and signalling pathways summarized in structured tables. TCM compounds converge on conserved regulatory networks-including PI3K/Akt, Nrf2/HO-1, NF-κB and AMPK/SIRT1-modulating the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, mitigating oxidative and inflammatory stress and improving reproductive organ function across species. Although these mechanisms are conserved, dosage must be empirically re-determined per target species due to differences in digestive physiology. Persistent challenges include standardization, scarcity of large-scale clinical trials and absence of regulatory frameworks. We propose an integrative roadmap combining multi-omics, drug delivery and species-relevant trials to support TCM's sustainable application within a One Health framework.
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Si et al. (2026) studied this question.
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