Dose and food matrix effects on selenium retention in mouse tissues from selenium-rich vegetables and rice: Implications for selenium bioavailability.

Summary

This study investigates how the food matrix and selenium dose influence selenium retention in mouse tissues, using both purified selenium compounds and selenium-rich agricultural products including rice and vegetables. The findings indicate that tissue selenium accumulation follows a non-linear, plateauing pattern with increasing dose, suggesting saturation of retention mechanisms. The work has implications for dietary selenium biofortification strategies by identifying which food sources and dose ranges may most effectively contribute to selenium status.

UK applicability

Whilst conducted using mouse models and food matrices likely sourced from Chinese agricultural systems, the mechanistic findings on dose-dependent selenium retention are broadly relevant to UK nutritional policy, where selenium intakes are commonly below recommended levels due to low-selenium soils and dietary patterns. UK biofortification programmes and dietary guidance on selenium-rich foods could draw on these findings when evaluating the relative bioavailability of selenium from plant-based sources.

Key measures

Selenium concentration in liver and kidney tissues (µg/kg or µg/g); dose-response relationships; selenium retention by sex; comparison across selenium species (SeMet, SeCys2, MeSeCys) and food matrices (celery, rice, vegetables)

Outcomes reported

The study measured selenium retention in mouse liver and kidney tissues following ingestion of selenium-rich vegetables, rice, and purified selenium compounds at varying doses. It reported non-linear, dose-dependent tissue accumulation patterns and compared bioavailability across different food matrices and selenium species.

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