ABSTRACT
Selenium (Se) content in the human diet is a topic of serious interest in public health systems around the world. Low dietary intake of Se can cause health disorders, including oxidative-related stress, epilepsy, fertility reduction, immune deficiency, and thyroid gland disorders (Rayman 2012, Zeng & Combs, 2008, Schomburg & Köhne 2008). Food products are the major source of Se for the general population and Se deficiencies can arise if dietary Se supply and intake is not adequate. The Se content of food is, however, highly dependent on the amount of bioavailable Se present in the soil and on the ability of plants to take up and accumulate Se. For this reason, it is vital to promote Se uptake by plants and to produce crops with higher Se concentrations and bioavailability in their edible tissues. In this regard, biofortification is an agronomy-based strategy that produces Se-enriched food products after growing crops in soils rich in Se or after Se has been applied to either plants, the soil, or seeds prior to planting. In the oral presentation, I will discuss real biofortification strategies that Bañuelos and other colleagues are practicing worldwide to produce Se-biofortified food products. Examples of producing biofortified food products in California will be shown below.
