Natural Variation in Grain Selenium Concentration of Wild Barley, Hordeum spontaneum, Populations from Israel

Wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum), the progenitor of cultivated barley, is an important genetic resource for cereal improvement. Selenium (Se) is an essential trace mineral for humans and animals with antioxidant, anticancer, antiarthropathy, and antiviral effects. In the current study, the grain Se concentration (GSeC) of 92 H. spontaneum genotypes collected from nine populations representing different habitats in Israel was investigated in the central area of Guizhou Province, China. Remarkable variations in GSeC were found between and within populations, ranging from 0 to 0.387 mg kg−1 among the 92 genotypes with an average of 0.047 mg kg−1. Genotype 20_C from the Sede Boqer population had the highest GSeC, while genotype 25_1 from the Atlit population had the lowest. The mean value of GSeC in each population varied from 0.010 to 0.105 mg kg−1. The coefficient of variation for each population ranged from 12% to 163%. Significant correlations were found between GSeC and 12 ecogeographical factors out of 14 studied. Habitat soil type also significantly affected GSeC. The wild barley exhibited wider GSeC ranges and greater diversity than its cultivated counterparts. The higher Se grain concentrations found in H. spontaneum populations suggest that wild barley germplasm confer higher abilities for Se uptake and accumulation, which can be used for genetic studies of barley nutritional value and for further improvement of domesticated cereals

Comparative effect of organic and inorganic selenium supplementation on selenium status in camel

AbstractSelenium deficiency is widely described in livestock from the Arabian Peninsula, notably in the camel, and selenium supplementation is based on cattle or horse requirements, usually with sodium selenite product. In order to test the effect of organic Se supplementation vs inorganic Se, 24 pregnant camels were subjected to 3 treatment groups starting one month before delivery (control without Se, non-organic bolus, organic Se). Blood, milk and feces samples were collected from one month before delivery to 3months of lactation. At delivery, the organic group had a significant higher Se concentration (P<0.01) in serum (8.21±1.38μg/100mL) and in colostrum (7.27±2.89μg/100mL) than in inorganic group (3.90±0.68 and 3.72±0.71, respectively) and than in control group (5.45±2.38 and 2.70±0.66, respectively). In calf serum, the Se concentration was significantly higher (P<0.001) in the two supplemented groups (6.32±2.81 and 5.99±3.31μg/100mL in organic and inorganic groups, respectively) than in control (3.42±1.41μg/100mL). The Se in mother serum decreased after parturition but was highly correlated to Se serum in calf and to Se fecal excretion. Se in milk was lower than in colostrum in all groups (P<0.01). Treatments had no significant effect on somatic cell count. This study revealed that organic supplementation in camel appeared more efficient

Effect of mango seeds as an untraditional source of energy on the productive performance of dairy Damascus goats

Eighteen dairy Damascus goats weighing 38–45 kg live body weight and aged 3–4 years were divided into three groups according to their body weight, with six goats in each group. Yellow corn grain in their concentrate feed mixture was replaced with mango seeds (MS) at levels of 0% MS in group 1 (G1, control), 20% MS in group 2 (G2), and 40% MS in group 3 (G3). The digestibility coefficients of the organic matter, dry matter, crude fiber, crude protein, ether extract, nitrogen-free extract, and total digestible nutrients increased (P &lt; 0.05) upon feeding MS to G2 and G3. The amounts of dry matter, total digestible nutrients, and digestible crude protein required per 1 kg 3.5% fat-corrected milk (FCM) were lower (P &lt; 0.05) in G2 and G3 vs. G1. Actual milk and 3.5% FCM yield increased (P &lt; 0.05) with the increasing MS dietary level. G2 and G3 had the highest significant (P &lt; 0.05) total solids, total protein, non-protein nitrogen, casein, ash, fat, solids not fat, lactose, and calcium contents compared with G1. Replacing yellow corn grain with MS in G2 and G3 significantly (P &lt; 0.05) decreased the cholesterol concentration and AST activity. Feeding MS increased the concentrations of caprioc, caprylic, capric, stearic, oleic, elaidic, and linoleic acids and decreased the concentrations of butyric, laueic, tridecanoic, myristic, myristoleic, pentadecanoic, heptadecanoic, cis-10-Heptadecanoic, cis-11-eicosenoic, linolenic, arachidonic, and lignoseric acids in the milk fat. The results show that the replacement of corn grain with MS improved the digestibility, milk yield, feed conversion, and economic efficiency, with no adverse effects on the performance of Damascus goats