ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Nutrition
Foliar application of selenium increased selenium accumulation, speciation, and bioaccessibility, as well as the yield and nutritional quality of sweet maize
Provisionally accepted
Emmanuel Osei Asamoah1
Solomon Musoke Ssemalawa1
Ofori Prince Danso2
Yuanqi Wang3
Muhammad Raza Farooq4Pincheng Rao1Haoyuan Sun1Yukun Guo3Youtao Chen1*Xuebin Yin1*- 1Anhui Science and Technology University, Bengbu, China
- 2University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
- 3Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan, China
- 4Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, China
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Selenium (Se) deficiency remains a significant global nutritional issue, emphasizing the need for efficient crop-based biofortification interventions. This study examined the mechanistic responses of sweet maize (Zea mays L.) to foliar Se fertilization (0, 20, 40, and 60 g ha⁻¹), focusing on antioxidant regulation, physiological traits, nutrient metabolism, Se speciation, and Se bioaccessibility. Moderate Se doses (20–40 g ha⁻¹) enhanced chlorophyll retention and photosynthetic efficiency, accompanied by increased activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT), as well as 22.8% reduction in malondialdehyde (MDA), indicating improved redox homeostasis. These biochemical improvements facilitated higher assimilate accumulation, resulting in a 2–7% increase in fresh cob yield and enhanced levels of soluble sugars, amylose, protein, vitamin C, and key micronutrients (magnesium, iron, copper, manganese). However, excessive Se (60 g ha⁻¹) caused oxidative imbalance, leading to decreased enzyme activity and reduced yield. Kernel Se concentration increased significantly with Se supply, dominated by selenomethionine (SeMet) (82.3% of total Se), exhibiting high in vitro bioaccessibility (35.6% gastric, 76.0% intestinal). The coordinated regulation of antioxidant defense and nutrient metabolism under optimal Se supply enhances both plant physiological performance and the nutritional bioefficacy of edible kernels, providing a mechanistic framework for sustainable Se biofortification.
Keywords: Foliar application1, Selenite2, Sweet maize3, yield4, antioxidant5, Mineral elements6, Speciation7, Bioaccessibility8
Received: 28 Oct 2025; Accepted: 03 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Asamoah, Ssemalawa, Danso, Wang, Farooq, Rao, Sun, Guo, Chen and Yin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Youtao Chen
Xuebin Yin
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