Selenium in biology
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Selenium is an essential mineral micronutrient for animals, though it is toxic in large doses. In plants, it sometimes occurs in toxic amounts as forage, e.g. locoweed. Selenium is a component of the
Relationship between survival of juvenile salmon and concentration of selenium in their tissues after 90 days (Chinook salmon) or 45 days (Atlantic salmon) exposure to dietary selenium. The 10% lethality level (LC10=1.84 μg/g) was derived by applying the biphasic model of Brain and Cousens to only the Chinook salmon data. The Chinook salmon data comprise two series of dietary treatments, combined here because the effects on survival are indistinguishable.
Selenium at nutritional levels is required for cell homeostasis, playing a role as an anti-oxidant through selenoproteins, thus, act chemo-preventive against cancer. In contrast, supra-nutritional levels act as pro-oxidant toxic in tumour cells.
Selenium can either play a pro-oxidant role inducing ROS, activating the Akt–NF–кB pathway or play an antioxidant role through selenoprotein synthesis such as TXNRD relocating to the nucleus and activating NF-кB, resulting in further activation of leukocytes and pro-inflammatory cytokine genes.
Locoweed
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Locoweed is a common name in North America for any plant that produces swainsonine, an alkaloid harmful to livestock. Worldwide, swainsonine is produced by a small number of species, most of them in t
Selenium in biology
…is an essential mineral micronutrient for animals, though it is toxic in large doses. In plants, it sometimes occurs in toxic amounts as forage, e.g. locoweed. Selenium is a component of the amino acids selenocysteine and selenomethionine. In humans, selenium is a trace element nutrient that functions as…
Oxytropis sericea in bloom
Astragalus lentiginosus in fruit
Swainsona galegifolia