Metallic trace elements in cereal grain – a review_ how much metal do we eat_.pdfVIP

REVIEW Metallic trace elements in cereal grain – a review: how much metal do we eat? Tihana Tekli
c1, Zdenko Loncari
c1, Vlado Kovacevi
c2 Bal Ram Singh3 1Department of Agroecology, Faculty of Agriculture, University J. J. Strossmayer in Osijek, Kralja Petra Svaci
ca 1d, 31000, Osijek, Croatia 2Department for Plant Production, Faculty of Agriculture, University J. J. Strossmayer in Osijek, Kralja Petra Svaci
ca 1d, 31000, Osijek, Croatia 3Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, PO Box 5003, 1432, As, Norway Keywords Essential trace elements, food chain, maize, metals, rice, wheat Correspondence Tihana Tekli
c, Department of Agroecology, Faculty of Agriculture, University J. J. Strossmayer in Osijek, Kralja Petra Svaci
ca 1d, 31000 Osijek, Croatia. Tel: +385-31-554- 828; Fax: +385-31-207-017; E-mail: tteklic@pfos.hr Funding Information No funding information provided. Received: 2 April 2013; Revised: 8 May 2013; Accepted: 11 May 2013 doi: 10.1002/fes3.24 Abstract Plants are the first step of a metal’s pathway from the soil to heterotrophic organisms such as animals and humans, so the content of metallic trace ele- ments in edible parts of a plant represent available load of these metals that may enter the food chain through plants. Among metal elements, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn are micronutrients as they are essential in trace amounts for physiologi- cal processes in living organisms and therefore are a significant component of the soil–plant–food continuum. Billions of people around the world suffer from micronutrient malnutrition. This review is aimed at giving an overview of the data pertaining to the Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu content of the grains of the globally most important cereals – wheat, rice, and maize, reported mostly during the last two decades. The prevailing opinions on their importance in the food chain, and current strategies for enrichment of cereal grains with those essential microelements are briefly summar