The influence of selenium addition during seeds' germination on the biological properties of obtained sprouts
Selenium plays a vital role in human body, because in the form of aminoacids (Se methionine, Se cysteine) it is found in the active centres of over 25 enzymes, including those regarded as 'cytoprotective' Unfortunatelly, its daily intake in Poland and other European countries is lower than predicted by dietary recommendations. The consequences of selenium deficiency in diet might be severe, including higher susceptibility to cardio vascular diseases and inflammation, decline of immune function, increased susceptibility to cancer, type 2 diabetes and nervous system disorders.The aim of this study was to determine the influence of seed germination in the selenium enriched medium on biological properties of sprouts. For the experiments, the seeds of Brassica plants: white cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata f. alba) broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica) mustard (Sinapsis alba) as well as rye seeds (Secale cereale) were germinated using water with or without selenium (SeO2) addition. Then, the antioxidant activity of extracts obtained from sprouts was assessed by spectrophotometric tests employing ABTS, DPPH or FC reagents. The same extracts were used to induce the activity of glutathione S transferases in human colon cancer HT29 cell line. The Se presence during germination influenced both antioxidant potential of sprouts and their ability to induce enzymatic activities considered to contribute to the phase II biotransformation of xenobiotics. These results suggests that Se enriched sprouts could be proposed as a health promoting food product.