Development of a method for producing selenium-enriched radish sprouts

Abstract Brassicaceae is one of the few plant families with the ability to incorporate the essential trace element selenium (Se) into organic compounds, and the vegetables are claimed to have a number of human health benefits based on both Se and glucosinolate content. We investigated the effect of Se addition on the nutrient composition of broccoli, purple radish and green radish sprouts and develop an efficient growing method for producing high concentration Se radish sprouts that does not impact the glucosinolate content and has little seleniferous waste. The concentration of Se in sprouts increased exponentially with time in the presence of high Se supply (9.2 μmol Se g −1 seed). At lower rates of Se supply (≤2.5 μg Se g −1 seed) sprouts containing a target Se concentration were produced according to the linear relationship y  = 0.91 x, where y is the target Se concentration in μg Se g −1 FW, and x is the concentration of sodium selenate in water added at 8.3 mL of water g −1 dry seed. Glucosinolate profiles differed between broccoli and radish but the total glucosinolate concentration of the sprouts was unaffected by Se addition. Radish was more suitable than broccoli for producing sprouts high in both glucosinolates and Se.