Summary
This critical narrative review synthesises peer-reviewed evidence on selenium's biological roles in livestock production, examining how deficiency manifests across different mammalian species and production systems. The authors compare clinical presentations between ruminants and non-ruminants, and between herbivores and omnivores, whilst evaluating oral supplementation as a preventive strategy for production diseases including placental retention, mastitis, and reduced fertility.
UK applicability
UK livestock producers, particularly in organic and grassland-based systems where forage selenium content is variable and dependent on soil status, may benefit from this species-specific guidance on deficiency signs and supplementation. The findings are relevant to UK dairy and beef cattle, sheep, and pig production where selenium status influences reproductive health and disease susceptibility.
Key measures
Clinical signs of selenium deficiency (white muscle disease, yellow fat disease, vitamin E/selenium deficiency syndrome, retained placenta, metritis, mastitis, reduced fertility); immune function; reproductive system function; thyroid hormone metabolism; antioxidant defence markers
Outcomes reported
The review synthesised knowledge on selenium's biological significance, manifestations of deficiency across mammalian livestock species (ruminants vs. non-ruminants, herbivores vs. omnivores), and dietary supplementation strategies. The paper compared clinical presentations of selenium deficiency across calves, lambs, kids, foals, donkey foals, and pigs.
Topic tags
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