Effects of diet and chemical form of selenium on selenium metabolism in sheep.

The effects of diet composition and chemical form of Se on intestinal flow, absorption, and retention of Se were determined in sheep by the balance technique and by disappearance of Se from sites along the gastrointestinal tract with reference to dual-phase digesta markers. Six sheep with ruminal and duodenal cannulas were used in a crossover design with a split-plot arrangement of the Se isotope treatments. Sheep were fed a forage (alfalfa hay)-based (.37 mg Se/kg) or concentrate (barley)-based (.27 mg Se/kg) diet at 90% of ad libitum intake. Selenium stable isotopes (enriched [77Se]yeast, enriched [82Se]selenite) and fluid (Co-EDTA) and particulate (Cr-mordanted fiber) markers were administered simultaneously into the rumen four times daily for 7 d, and total collections of feces and urine were made every 24 h for these and the following 7 d. A larger proportion (51 to 61%) of the Se tracers flowing to the duodenum was associated with the particulate fraction, mainly as bacteria-associated Se, than with the fluid fraction. The [82Se]selenite was more available (P < .05) for absorption and retention than [77Se]yeast, indicating that inorganic chemical forms of Se are as available to the ruminant as organic forms of Se commonly found in feedstuffs. Selenium absorption and retention were greater (P < .05) in sheep receiving the concentrate-based diet than in sheep receiving the forage-based diet. Thus, the availability of Se from inorganic and organic sources in sheep seems to be influenced by diet composition.