title: Toxicity of seleno-L-methionine, seleno-DL-methionine, high selenium wheat, and selenized yeast to mallard ducklings.
abstract: The toxicity of four chemical forms of selenium (seleno-L-methionine, seleno-DL-methionine, selenized yeast, and high selenium wheat) was compared in day-old mallard ducklings (Anas platyrhynchos). In the first experiment, in which the basal diet was 75% wheat, survival after 2 weeks was lower for ducklings fed 30 micrograms/g selenium as seleno-L-methionine (36%) than for ducklings fed 30 micrograms/g selenium as seleno-DL-methionine (100%) or 30 micrograms/g selenium from high selenium yeast (88%). The concentration of selenium at 2 weeks in the livers of survivors was similar for ducklings fed 15 micrograms/g selenium as seleno-DL-methionine (12 micrograms/g, wet weight), seleno-L-methionine (11 micrograms/g), and high selenium wheat (11 micrograms/g), but was lower when the selenium came from selenized yeast (6.2 micrograms/g). When fed 30 micrograms/g selenium from the various sources, the selenium concentrations in liver were 20 micrograms/g for seleno-DL-methionine, 19 micrograms/g for seleno-L-methionine, and 9.9 micrograms/g for selenized yeast. In a second experiment, in which the basal diet was a commercial duck feed, survival after 2 weeks was 100% in ducklings fed 30 micrograms/g selenium as seleno-DL-methionine, seleno-L-methionine, or selenized yeast. Selenium concentrations in liver were similar for ducklings fed the 30-micrograms/g selenium diets as the DL or L forms of selenomethionine (27 and 25 micrograms/g), but lower for ducklings fed selenized yeast (13 micrograms/g).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: U.S. National Biological Service, Patuxent Environmental Science Center, Laurel, Maryland 20708-4017, USA.
authors.forename: G H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Heinz
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Hoffman
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: LeCaptain
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D004372:Ducks; D004435:Eating / Q000187:drug effects; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D012643:Selenium / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D012645:Selenomethionine / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D013237:Stereoisomerism; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D014908:Triticum / Q000378:metabolism; D015003:Yeasts / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D012645:Selenomethionine; D012643:Selenium