Efficacy and selenium enrichment of Lycium barbarum in hydroponic and soil conditions in the Ararat valley | Functional Foods in Health and Disease - Online ISSN: 2160-3855; Print ISSN: 2378-7007 Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer Open Menu Functional Foods in Health and Disease - Online ISSN: 2160-3855; Print ISSN: 2378-7007 Home Food Science Publisher Functional Food Center Current Archives About About the Journal Aims and Scope Contact Editing Services Editorial Team Express Peer Review Graphical Abstract Journal Insights Privacy Statement Submissions Announcements Search Search Register Login Home / Archives / Vol. 14 No. 7 (2024): July 2024 / Research Articles Efficacy and selenium enrichment of Lycium barbarum in hydroponic and soil conditions in the Ararat valley Authors Michael Babakhanyan Laura Ghalachyan Vergine Chavushyan Karen Simonyan Lilit Darbinyan Shushanik Gulnazaryan Lusya Hovhannisyan DOI: https://doi.org/10.31989/ffhd.v14i7.1349 Abstract Background: It is known that 60-80% of the population affected by various diseases, such as heart attack, stroke, and oncological diseases is associated with selenium (Se) deficiency. Therefore, enriching agricultural crops with Se is considered a current issue.  Objective: This study investigates Se enrichment of Lycium barbarum (Lb) and its effectiveness in hydroponic and soil conditions in the Ararat Valley. The research focuses on the impact of adding exogenous Se on plant productivity,  Se accumulation, and the content of biologically active substances (BAS) in Lb berries and leaves.  Methods: The experiments were conducted from 2021 to 2023 using hydroponic and soil cultivation methods with varying Se concentrations in nutrient solutions and foliar nutrition.  Results: The results demonstrate that Se enrichment significantly increased Se and BAS levels in both leaves and berries of Lb, with hydroponic cultivation exhibiting higher accumulation compared to soil conditions. Foliar feeding with a 0.005% Se solution and exogenous Se addition to nutrient solutions at 1.0 mg/L resulted in notable improvements in Se content and plant productivity. Furthermore, the analyses revealed significant differences between hydroponically and soil-grown Lb, emphasizing the potential of hydroponic cultivation for producing Se-enriched plant material with enhanced BAS content.  Conclusion: Hydroponic cultivation supplemented with Se and foliar nutrition is recommended for obtaining Se-rich Lb plant material, which is suitable for medicinal and functional food purposes. These findings contribute to the development of biotechnologies for Se -enriched plant production and addressing health and nutritional needs. Keywords: Goji, berries, biologically active substances, flavonoids, phenolic acids, tannins, carotenoids Downloads [Abstract] [Full Article] Published 2024-07-23 Issue Vol. 14 No. 7 (2024): July 2024 Section Research Articles License Copyright (c) 2024 Functional Foods in Health and Disease This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Authors retain the copyright of their articles and grant the Functional Food Center (FFC) and its journals the right of first publication under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, including commercial use, provided the original author(s) and source are properly credited. Authors may post and share their published work freely, provided that the original publication in this journal is acknowledged. By submitting to this journal, authors confirm that their manuscripts are original, not under consideration elsewhere, and that they hold the necessary rights to grant this license. The Functional Food Center encourages open scientific exchange and allows derivative and extended works, provided attribution to the original publication is maintained. About the Journal      Editing Services      Graphical Abstract      Journal Insights        Submissions        Editorial Team       Privacy Statement        Contact        Current        Archives   Open Journal Systems Hosting and Support by: OpenJournalSystems.com