High-selenium wheat: biofortification for better health.

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Science
• Human Nutrition
• Environmental Chemistry

Background:

• Selenium (Se) is essential for human health but often unavailable in soils, leading to widespread deficiency.
• Se deficiency is linked to increased risks of thyroid dysfunction, cancer, viral diseases, and cardiovascular and inflammatory conditions.
• Optimal Se intake, potentially supra-nutritional, is crucial for cancer protection via apoptosis promotion and neo-angiogenesis inhibition.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore strategies for increasing Se intake to combat deficiency and improve public health.
• To evaluate the potential of enhancing Se content in wheat as a food systems approach.
• To identify promising methods like Se fertilization and plant breeding for biofortification.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on Se bioavailability, deficiency, and health impacts.
• Analysis of Se levels in Australian populations and wheat.
• Assessment of strategies including crop fertilization, plant breeding, supplementation, and food fortification.

Main Results:

• Se deficiency affects an estimated billion individuals worldwide, impacting health significantly.
• Wheat is a major Se source for Australians, with current levels above the global mean.
• Se fertilization and breeding for higher grain Se density show promise for biofortification.

Conclusions:

• Increasing Se content in wheat through biofortification is a viable food systems strategy to improve population Se intake and public health.
• Further research is needed in Australia on cost-effective Se fertilization and genetic variability for Se accumulation in wheat.
• Large-scale food fortification with Se awaits results from ongoing intervention studies on cancer, HIV/AIDS, and asthma.