Rachel Hurst
Soil-type influences human selenium status and underlies widespread selenium deficiency risks in Malawi
Hurst, Rachel; Siyame, Edwin W.P.; Young, Scott D.; Chilimba, Allan D.C.; Joy, Edward J.M.; Black, Colin R.; Ander, E. Louise; Watts, Michael J.; Chilima, Benson; Gondwe, Jellita; Kang�ombe, Dalitso; Stein, Alexander J.; Fairweather-Tait, Susan J.; Gibson, Rosalind S.; Kalimbira, Alexander A.; Broadley, Martin R.
Authors
Edwin W.P. Siyame
Scott D. Young
Allan D.C. Chilimba
Edward J.M. Joy
Colin R. Black
E. Louise Ander
Michael J. Watts
Benson Chilima
Jellita Gondwe
Dalitso Kang�ombe
Alexander J. Stein
Susan J. Fairweather-Tait
Rosalind S. Gibson
Alexander A. Kalimbira
Professor MARTIN BROADLEY MARTIN.BROADLEY@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
PROFESSOR OF PLANT NUTRITION
Abstract
Selenium (Se) is an essential human micronutrient with critical roles in immune functioning and antioxidant defence. Estimates of dietary Se intakes and status are scarce for Africa although crop surveys indicate deficiency is probably widespread in Malawi. Here we show that Se deficiency is likely endemic in Malawi based on the Se status of adults consuming food from contrasting soil types. These data are consistent with food balance sheets and composition tables revealing that >80% of the Malawi population is at risk of dietary Se inadequacy. Risk of dietary Se inadequacy is >60% in seven other countries in Southern Africa, and 22% across Africa as a whole. Given that most Malawi soils cannot supply sufficient Se to crops
for adequate human nutrition, the cost and benefits of interventions to alleviate Se deficiency should be
determined; for example, Se-enriched nitrogen fertilisers could be adopted as in Finland.
Citation
Hurst, R., Siyame, E. W., Young, S. D., Chilimba, A. D., Joy, E. J., Black, C. R., Ander, E. L., Watts, M. J., Chilima, B., Gondwe, J., Kang’ombe, D., Stein, A. J., Fairweather-Tait, S. J., Gibson, R. S., Kalimbira, A. A., & Broadley, M. R. (2013). Soil-type influences human selenium status and underlies widespread selenium deficiency risks in Malawi. Scientific Reports, 3(1425), https://doi.org/10.1038/srep01425
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | Feb 21, 2013 |
Online Publication Date | Mar 12, 2013 |
Publication Date | Mar 12, 2013 |
Deposit Date | Apr 1, 2014 |
Publicly Available Date | Apr 1, 2014 |
Journal | Scientific Reports |
Electronic ISSN | 2045-2322 |
Publisher | Nature Publishing Group |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 3 |
Issue | 1425 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1038/srep01425 |
Public URL | https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/713787 |
Publisher URL | http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/130312/srep01425/full/srep01425.html |
Contract Date | Apr 1, 2014 |
Files
srep01425.pdf
(716 Kb)
PDF
Publisher Licence URL
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
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