Bioavailability of selenium in soil-plant system and a regulatory approach

Authors: DINH, QUANG - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; WANG, MENGKE - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; TRAN, THI ANH THU - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; ZHOU, FEI - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; WANG, DAN - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; ZHAI, HUI - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; PENG, QIN - Chongqing University; XUE, MINGYUE - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; DU, ZEKUN - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University; Banuelos, Gary; LIN, ZHI-QIN - Southern Illinois University; LIANG, DONGLI - Southern Illinois University

Submitted to: Critical Reviews in Environmental Science Technology
Publication Type: Literature Review
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/22/2018
Publication Date: 12/27/2018
Citation: Dinh, Q.T., Wang, M., Tran, T., Zhou, F., Wang, D., Zhai, H., Peng, Q., Xue, M., Du, Z., Banuelos, G.S., Lin, Z., Liang, D. 2018. Bioavailability of selenium in soil-plant system and a regulatory approach. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science Technology. 49(6):443-517. https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2018.1550987.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2018.1550987

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Selenium (Se) is an essential micronutrient for human and animal health. There is, however, a narrow range between a dietary Se deficiency and/or a Se toxicity for humans. To determine a person's Se status and daily dietary Se intake, it is essential to know the amount of Se available in the soil that can enter the food chain by plant uptake. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an analytical approach that accurately predicts the amount of Se in the soil that can be absorbed by plants. In this review, we have comprehensively collected, compiled, and evaluated the literature concerning the biogeochemical behavior of Se and its bioavailability in the soil. The bioavailability of Se plays a decisive role in producing Se-enriched agricultural products and in the risk assessment of Se-contaminated soils. Previous studies have shown that the total Se in the soil does not represent the bioavailability of Se. Hence, developing extraction techniques that identify the bioavailable forms of Se will not only indicate the amount of Se available for plant uptake, but it is a key parameter that determines the mobility and potential toxicity or deficiency of Se in the soil. Selenium's uptake by plants depends on a variety of physiocochemical reactions, such as adsorption-desorption, precipitation-dissolution, oxidation-reduction, and methylation-demethylation. In addition, the different chemical forms of Se exhibit various migration mobilities and their respective plant bioavailability in the soil. Therefore, in a complex soil-plant system, an accurate assessment of the bioavailability of Se is vital for the safe implementation of biofortification and phytoremediation strategies in Se-deficient and Se-contaminated areas, respectively.