Biofortification of garlic and onion plants with selenium and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi inoculation are considered beneficial for producing functional food with anticarcinogenic properties. The effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation, sodium selenate foliar application, and the combination AMF + selenium (Se), compared to an untreated control, were assessed regarding the bulb yield, biochemical characteristics, and mineral composition. AMF + Se application resulted in the highest yield, monosaccharides, and Se content in both garlic and onion bulbs; and an increase of ascorbic acid and flavonoids in onion, and flavonoids in garlic. The highest bulb concentrations of P and K were recorded under the AMF + Se application, Ca was best affected by AMF, and Mg accumulation was highest under all the treatments in garlic and upon AMF + Se application in onion bulbs. Contrary to garlic, onion bulbs were characterized by a remarkable increase in microelements (B, Cu, Fe, Mn, Si, Zn) under the AMF + Se treatment. Selenium, either with or without AMF application, promoted the accumulation of B and Si in onion and Mo and Zn in garlic bulbs. It can be inferred that the interaction between AMF and Se is highly specific, differing for garlic and onion grown in similar environmental conditions in Grozny region, Chechen Republic.

Production of functional food with significant antioxidant and anti-carcinogen activity is considered to be extremely significant in conditions of global ecological crisis. Among Allium species, wild garlic (Allium ursinum L.) along with the ordinary garlic are known to be the leaders in accumulation of natural antioxidants and sulfur-containing compounds with strong anti-carcinogen activity. Taking into consideration that Allium species belong to a group of natural accumulators of selenium, foliar biofortification of wild garlic with sodium selenate was achieved in Gudermes region of the Chechen republic. It was demonstrated that fortification of plants with selenium resulted in significant increase of chlorophyll a and b as well as carotene content, and two-fold increase of both polyphenol concentration and total antioxidant activity. Total dose of 2 mg Na2Se04 per square meter provided 14.4-fold increase of selenium content in A. ursinum leaves. Biofortification of plants with selenium resulted in 1.36, 1.28 and 1.38-fold increase of Cr, Fe and V concentration in leaves compared to leaves of non fortified plants. Leaves of A. ursinum fortified with selenium showed anomalously low Si content compared to non fortified plants. Compared to A. ursinum grown in Moscow region, wild garlic of the Chechen republic accumulated 2-fold lower levels of dry matter and 4.8-fold higher levels of monosaccharides. Compared to non fortified garlic leaves, those of A. ursinum demonstrated significantly higher levels of Cu, Fe, Mg и Zn. The results obtained suggest that A. ursinum fortified with selenium may be considered as a new functional food with strong antioxidant activity.

Production of functional food with high levels of selenium and other antioxidants is very valuable for human protection against different forms of oxidant stress. Among leafy vegetables parsley demonstrate the highest levels of antioxidants. Biochemical analysis and fluorimetric determination of selenium revealed that foliar biofortification of 4 parsley (Petroselinum crispum) cultivars and Mitsuba (Cryptotaenia japonica) with sodium selenate (25 mg L-1) resulted in the highest biofortification level in curly parsley cultivar Krasotka (102.9) which showed the highest leaf surface area, antioxidant activity (65 mg GAE g-1 d.w.) and flavonoids content (25.9 mg quercetin equivalent g-1 d.w.), and the increase by 1.4 times in carotene content and 1,5 times in total chlorophyll content. ICP-MS method of mineral composition evaluation recorded extremely high levels of B and Si in Mustuba, which increased due to Se supplementation by 1.23 and 1.46 times respectively. In a two-year experiment with control and Se-fortified, leafy parsley, cultivar Moskvichka reached high values of seed yield and viability, and seed Se content (6170 µg kg-1 d.w.). The results of the present investigation demonstrate high prospects of parsley and Mitsuba selenium biofortification for production of functional food with elevated levels of microelement and high antioxidant activity.

The importance of using the barks of trees and shrubs as powerful natural antioxidants suggests the necessity to evaluate the effect of different environmental factors on bark extracts’ quality. The determination of total antioxidant activity (AOA) and polyphenol content (TP) in the bark of 58 tree and shrub species from 7 regions differing in mean annual temperature, insolation, humidity, salinity level, and altitude was performed. The above stress factors positively affected bark AOA but did not have a statistically significant effect on TP. The bark of trees grown in the seashore proximity was characterized by significantly higher AOA than samples gathered in other areas, similarly to the trees grown at high altitude. The bark antioxidant status of 18 species was described for the first time. New sources of powerful antioxidants were represented by the ornamental shrubs Cornus sanguinea and Cornus alba, which showed the highest AOA (169–171 mg GAE g−1 d.w.). Among the typical halophytes, Calligonum and Tamarix had high AOA (172 and 85 mg GAE g−1 d.w.), while in the bark of tamarisk, an Se accumulator, an Se concentration of about 900 µg kg−1 d.w. was recorded. A significant positive correlation was found between leaves and bark AOA in the Karadag Nature Reserve’s deciduous trees (r = 0.898, p < 0.01). The relationship between bark AOA and TP was highly significant (r = 0.809; p < 0.001) for all samples except the mountainous ones. The results of the present research revealed new opportunities in successive bark utilization.

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