Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr)
Leafy vegetables are a daily part of the human diet all over the world. At the same time, a worldwide problem of Se malnutrition is present in human populations, mostly due to low soil Se contents. As plants represent the main source of this element in the human diet, with Se being an essential trac...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Agriculture |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/11/1072 |
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| author | Lucija Galić Marija Špoljarević Alicja Auriga Boris Ravnjak Tomislav Vinković Zdenko Lončarić |
| author_facet | Lucija Galić Marija Špoljarević Alicja Auriga Boris Ravnjak Tomislav Vinković Zdenko Lončarić |
| author_sort | Lucija Galić |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Leafy vegetables are a daily part of the human diet all over the world. At the same time, a worldwide problem of Se malnutrition is present in human populations, mostly due to low soil Se contents. As plants represent the main source of this element in the human diet, with Se being an essential trace element for humans and animals, plant foods containing Se can be used as an efficient means of increasing the Se in the human diet, as well as in animal feed (biofortification). At the same time, the production of growing media relies on limited peat reserves. The use of earthworms facilitates the production of composted organic masses mostly consisting of organic waste, called vermicompost. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of three different growing media (commercial peat media, vermicompost, and a 1:1 mixture) on Se biofortification’s efficacy and yield in lamb’s lettuce. The Se biofortification was performed with sodium selenate (Na<sub>2</sub>SeO<sub>4</sub>). It was shown that biofortification increased the Se contents such that a mass of only 48.9 g of fresh leaves contained enough Se for the recommended daily intake in human nutrition (55 µg Se/day), which represents a significant potential for solving Se malnutrition. Furthermore, the use of a 1:1 vermicompost–commercial substrate mixture showed a similar performance to the peat growing medium, contributing to the preservation of peat reserves. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T05:48:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b678a589aac043fc9812293b6d484a93 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0472 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T05:48:22Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agriculture |
| spelling | doaj.art-b678a589aac043fc9812293b6d484a932023-11-22T21:58:48ZengMDPI AGAgriculture2077-04722021-10-011111107210.3390/agriculture11111072Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr)Lucija Galić0Marija Špoljarević1Alicja Auriga2Boris Ravnjak3Tomislav Vinković4Zdenko Lončarić5Department of Agroecology and Environment Protection, Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Vladimira Preloga 1, 31000 Osijek, CroatiaDepartment of Agroecology and Environment Protection, Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Vladimira Preloga 1, 31000 Osijek, CroatiaDepartment of Animal Anatomy and Zoology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Animal Husbandry, West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, Janickiego 33, 71-270 Szczecin, PolandDepartment of Plant Production and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Vladimira Preloga 1, 31000 Osijek, CroatiaDepartment of Plant Production and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Vladimira Preloga 1, 31000 Osijek, CroatiaDepartment of Agroecology and Environment Protection, Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Vladimira Preloga 1, 31000 Osijek, CroatiaLeafy vegetables are a daily part of the human diet all over the world. At the same time, a worldwide problem of Se malnutrition is present in human populations, mostly due to low soil Se contents. As plants represent the main source of this element in the human diet, with Se being an essential trace element for humans and animals, plant foods containing Se can be used as an efficient means of increasing the Se in the human diet, as well as in animal feed (biofortification). At the same time, the production of growing media relies on limited peat reserves. The use of earthworms facilitates the production of composted organic masses mostly consisting of organic waste, called vermicompost. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of three different growing media (commercial peat media, vermicompost, and a 1:1 mixture) on Se biofortification’s efficacy and yield in lamb’s lettuce. The Se biofortification was performed with sodium selenate (Na<sub>2</sub>SeO<sub>4</sub>). It was shown that biofortification increased the Se contents such that a mass of only 48.9 g of fresh leaves contained enough Se for the recommended daily intake in human nutrition (55 µg Se/day), which represents a significant potential for solving Se malnutrition. Furthermore, the use of a 1:1 vermicompost–commercial substrate mixture showed a similar performance to the peat growing medium, contributing to the preservation of peat reserves.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/11/1072lamb’s lettucebiofortificationseleniummalnutritionhuman healthvermicompost |
| spellingShingle | Lucija Galić Marija Špoljarević Alicja Auriga Boris Ravnjak Tomislav Vinković Zdenko Lončarić Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr) Agriculture lamb’s lettuce biofortification selenium malnutrition human health vermicompost |
| title | Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr) |
| title_full | Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr) |
| title_fullStr | Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr) |
| title_short | Combining Selenium Biofortification with Vermicompost Growing Media in Lamb’s Lettuce (<i>Valerianella locusta</i> L. Laterr) |
| title_sort | combining selenium biofortification with vermicompost growing media in lamb s lettuce i valerianella locusta i l laterr |
| topic | lamb’s lettuce biofortification selenium malnutrition human health vermicompost |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/11/1072 |
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