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Serum Selenium Level in Healthy Koreans

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Abstract

Of trace elements in the serum of living organisms, selenium (Se) is an essential mineral and plays the role of an antioxidant as selenoproteins protecting the organism against oxidative damage induced by hydrogen peroxide, other lipid hydroperoxides, and their derivatives. The aim of this study was to determine the mean serum Se levels in healthy Korean volunteers (50 males and 50 females) by using an inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry method. The samples were collected at the Health Promotion Centre of Kangnam St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, the Catholic University of Korea, Kangnam District, Seoul in accordance with procedures approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Catholic University of Korea. The mean serum Se level in healthy subjects was 112.05 ± 30.42 μg/l. For gender, it was 120.81 ± 27.37 μg/l for females and 103.29 ± 31.05 μg/l for males. From the study result, there was a significant difference between the mean Se concentrations of gender groups (p = 0.0035). Also, the study indicated no effect of age on Se levels (p > 0.05) in the healthy individuals.

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by a grant from the National R&D Program for Cancer Control, Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family affairs, Republic of Korea (070186).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medicine, Hanyang University, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea

    Young-Jae Kim

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, 505 Banpo-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, 137-040, South Korea

    Oyunbileg Galindev, Su-Mi Bae, Hosub Im, Lanying Wen & Woong Shick Ahn

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medicine, Chosun University, Gwangju, 501-759, South Korea

    Jun Han Sei

  4. Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Basic Medical Science, College of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, 130-701, South Korea

    Young Rok Seo

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  1. Young-Jae Kim
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Correspondence to Woong Shick Ahn.

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Kim, YJ., Galindev, O., Sei, J.H. et al. Serum Selenium Level in Healthy Koreans. Biol Trace Elem Res 131, 103–109 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-009-8353-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-009-8353-6

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