Table 2.
Biofortification of Se in horticultural crops by soil/root zone application - recent reports.
| Sr. No. | Plant species/part | Se compound applied | Se concentration applied | Mode of application | Physiological effects/ Se biofortification | Fold change (compared to control) | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) |
Na2SeO3 | 0, 20, 40, 80, and 160 mg L−1 | Soil application (three times) |
- Regulation of phenylpropanoid pathway - 40.2 mg kg-1 DW Se accumulation in response 160 mg L-1 application |
2010-fold | Chen et al., 2025 |
| 2 | Citrus (Citrus reticulata) |
Na2SeO3 | 0 and 100 mg L-1 | Soil application | - 9.25 ng g-1 Se fruit - 92.1 ng g-1 Se in leaf |
2.74-fold 1.63-fold |
Wang et al., 2024 |
| 3 | Onion (Allium cepa L.) |
Na2SeO4 | 0, 10, 25, 50, 100 and 200 g ha-1 |
Soil application | - Increase in onion yield up to 99 kg ha-1 - 0.600 mg kg-1 Se in bulb |
60-fold | Machado et al., 2024 |
| 4 | Komatsuna (Brassica rapa var. perviridis) |
2-iminoselenazolidin-4-ones (ISeA) | 0 and 10 mg L-1 | Root zone | - 34.7 mg kg-1 Se in leaves | 35-fold | Semenova et al., 2024 |
| 5 | Chard (Beta vulgaris subsp. cicla) |
2-iminoselenazolidin-4-ones (ISeA) | 0 and 10 mg L-1 | Root zone | - 23.8 mg kg-1 Se in leaves - 55.6 mg kg-1 Se in petioles |
24-fold 56-fold |
Semenova et al., 2024 |
| 6 | Sweet cherry (Prunus avium) |
Na2SeO4 | 250 and 500 g ha−1 | Soil application | - Leaf Se concentrations up to 1.178 mg kg-1 (two-year average) - Fruit Se up to 2.45 µg 100 g-1 FW (two-year average) - No leaf or fruit injury by Se application |
27.3-fold 8.16-fold |
Wójcik, 2024 |
| 7 | Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum L.) |
Na2SeO4 Na2SeO3 |
0, 1 & 5 mg kg-1 each | Soil application | - Selenate increased tomato yield and Se accumulation in tomato root (28.5 mg kg-1), stem (16 mg kg-1), leaves (34 mg kg-1) and in fruits. - Selenite caused Se accumulation in tomato root (7.5 mg kg-1), stem (2 mg kg-1), leaves (6.2 mg kg-1) and in fruits. |
18.5-fold (root) 11.3-fold (stem) 28.6-fold (leaf) 12.3-fold (root) 1.33-fold (stem) 4.13-fold (leaf) |
Kang et al., 2024 |
| 8 | Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) |
Sodium selenate | 0, 10, 25, and 50 g Se ha−1 combined with S (S (0, 15, 30, and 60 g ha−1) | Soil application | - In the absence of S, leaf Se concentrations went up to 2.55 mg kg-1 (average two-year) - A two-year average seed Se contents were 1.45 mg kg-1 |
8.5-fold change 4.83-fold change |
Silva et al., 2023 |
| 9 | Rocket (Eruca sativa) |
Na2SeO4 | 0, 2.6, 3.9, or 5.2 μmol L−1 | Root zone/Hydroponics | - Leaf Se contents up to 55 µg g-1 DW in response to 5.2 μmol L−1 | 110-fold change | Francini et al., 2023 |
| 10 | Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) | - Leaf Se contents up to 15 µg g-1 DW in response to 5.2 μmol L−1 | 30-fold change | Francini et al., 2023 | |||
| 11 | Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) |
- Leaf Se contents up to 15 µg g-1 DW in response to 5.2 μmol L−1 | 30-fold change | Francini et al., 2023 | |||
| 12 | Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) |
Sodium selenite and sodium selenate | 0, 10 µM and mixture of both | Root zone/Hydroponics | - Grain Se contents were 150 mg kg-1 in response to selenite treatment | 300-fold change | Subirana et al., 2023 |
| 13 | Psyllium (Plantago ovata) | sodium selenate | 0, 10, 50, 100 and 500 µM | Agar medium/Root zone | - Highest accumulation of 457.65 µg g-1 FW at 500 µM Se treatment | ~250-fold change | Dey and Raychaudhuri, 2024 |