Selenium foliar application alters patterns of glucosinolate hydrolysis products of pak choi Brassica rapa L. var. chinensis

The importance of Selenium (Se) as a beneficial element in plants has been proven under several abiotic and biotic stress conditions. Importantly, Se is mainly incorporated into the human metabolism process as a component of food plants. In this study, we investigated the effects of foliar application of Se to pak choi Brassica rapa L. var. chinensis at different concentration levels (0, 0.5, 2, 20, 30 mg Se/Plant) on plant growth and glucosinolate hydrolysis products content. Both yield (FM) and dry matter (DM) were increased to 728.5 g and 41.4 g, respectively at a Se concentration of 2 mg Se/Plant. The sulfur amount was increased in response to higher concentrations of Se foliar application. Moreover, the concentration of the total glucosinolates hydrolysis products (GLS-HP) was 3.4 mu mol/g FW, and the isothiocyanates (ITC) concentration significantly increased to a maximum of 0.5 mu mol/g FW after the application of 2 mg of Se/Plant. This result is extremely promising owing to the health benefits associated with GLS-HP and isothiocynates. Additionally, increased Se application of more than 2 mg Se/Plant could have an opposite effect on plant growth and GLS-HP concentration.