See4All: how agri-food products can be enriched with selenium

Recently, the second international workshop of Se4All took place in Rome, specifically at the Department of Chemistry of La Sapienza University. Se4All is a project funded by the EU that explores the use of selenium-enriched edible plants as a solution to address health issues related to diets lacking this chemical element, affecting approximately 3 billion people worldwide. The event delved into cutting-edge techniques and analytical methodologies in food sciences to enhance the understanding and application of selenium biofortification in the dairy industry.

Numerous studies and international cases related to selenium enrichment were presented during the workshop, showcasing projects in Europe and South America (Argentina), including those concerning certain dairy products. These initiatives highlighted the current possibility of externally enriching food with selenium through treatments from external sources.

A specific area of interest was metabolomics, a discipline that determines the small molecules (metabolites) produced by an organism at a specific moment, with significant implications for food quality and safety. Gianfranco Diretto, a researcher from ENEA and METROFOOD-IT, addressed the theme of metabolomics during the workshop, stating that it plays a crucial role in characterizing agrifood products that can be biofortified with various nutritional and anti-nutritional components, such as selenium.

Diretto explained that metabolomics is not only essential for determining selenium levels in food – a task mainly handled by other chemical and analytical techniques – but also for leveraging its properties to characterize agrifood products. He provided examples of various application cases discussed during the workshop, including the genetic engineering of potatoes to enrich them with vitamin A and the enrichment of tomatoes with crocins, molecules typical of saffron, with significant nutritional impact. Another case involved the introduction of positive molecules called saponins in tomatoes, replacing harmful molecules like glycoalkaloids, thus demonstrating how innovation in the agrifood sector, including initiatives for creating selenium-enriched edible plants, can benefit from a metabolomics-based approach.

In conclusion of workshop, participants also visited the new Analytical Chemistry laboratory at La Sapienza University in Rome, featuring a metabolomics facility acquired as part of METROFOOD-IT. METROFOOD-IT is an infrastructure coordinated by ENEA and funded through the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) to support research and innovation in the agri-food sector.