Agricultural significance of selenium

Selenium (Se) deficiency in livestock and humans is more prevalent and of greater concern than Se toxicity and is the major focus of current research. Many regions of the world produce deficient cereals and forages for stock feeds. Deficiency can be prevented by adding Se to the feeds, dosing stock, foliar spraying the forages and cereals, and by adding Se to the soil with fertilizer. Two human diseases in China respond to Se, and other diseases elsewhere have recently been linked with low Se.