Biogeochemistry of selenium and its impact on food chain quality and human health

Perspectives in Nutrition is an introductory nutrition text appropriate for the majors and mixed majors nutrition courses. This student-focused text presents the major concepts in nutrition including the body's use of food nutrients and diet planning throughout the life cycle. The text places special emphasis on the application of nutrition principles in everyday life by exploring the health consequences of nutrition practices.

Perspectives in nutrition

Selenium deficiency in total parenteral nutrition.

Model for the amperometric enzyme electrode obtained through digital simulation and applied to the immobilized glucose oxidase system

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the geomedical aspects of selenium (Se), ranging from the soil through the plants to animal and human nutrition. Selenium has several essential functions in the animal and human body, and interactions occur with other elements and compounds. The beneficial effects of Se are obtained at different concentration levels, depending on the functions of Se and on interacting factors such as vitamin E, fatty acids, and sulfur. The nutritional minimum level for animals and humans is about 0.05–0.10 ppm Se in dry fodder/food, and intake below that cause severe deficiency diseases. At somewhat higher levels of Se intake, there are indications of a protective effect toward a number of human diseases, and toxic effects of Se occur with exposure to levels of 2–5 ppm Se or more, depending on the chemical form of the Se. Selenium toxicity in livestock is known in a few areas around the world, but Se deficiency has turned out to be much more common than Se toxicity. The Se deficiency problem is severe in New Zealand, in parts of China, in parts of North America, and in the Scandinavian countries.

Selenium in Soils and Plants and its Importance in Livestock and Human Nutrition

Extract Until recently, interest in the biology of selenium was focused on its properties as a naturally-occurring poison in plants grazed by stock in certain problem areas, notably in the western states of North America. The geological distribution of soils bearing seleniferous vegetation, the toxicities of various forms of selenium, including those of its inorganic salts, and the treatment and prevention of selenium poisoning have been dealt with in detail by Rosenfeld and Beath (1964), and those aspects will not be considered further in this review.

Selenium-responsive diseases of animals in New Zealand.

Selenium and animal health. Part I: The effect of alpha-tocopherol and selenium in the control of field outbreaks of white muscle disease in lambs.

Extract Unthriftiness in both weaned and unweaned lambs is probably the most important cause of economic loss in the New Zealand sheep industry. Although some of this unthriftiness is directly associated with under-feeding, most of it occurs in lambs grazing on abundant pasture which is presumed to be highly nutritious. Known causes of unthriftiness in lambs on this kind of pasture are cobalt deficiency and internal parasitism. However, it is commonly accepted that these account for only a part of the unthriftiness experienced.

Selenium and animal health.

Selenium and animal health

Extract This paper describes further observations on the incidence of, and factors connected with, white muscle disease in lambs. It supplements previous papers by Hartley (1953) and Hartley and Dodd (1957).

A. B. Grant

Papers

Selenium-responsive diseases of animals in New Zealand.

Selenium and animal health. Part I: The effect of alpha-tocopherol and selenium in the control of field outbreaks of white muscle disease in lambs.

Selenium and animal health.

Selenium and animal health

Further observations on white muscle disease in lambs.