Free Access
Issue
Analusis
Volume 28, Number 4, June 2000
MS for the study of natural mechanisms
Page(s) 316 - 323
Section Original articles
DOI https://doi.org/10.1051/analusis:2000121
Analusis 28, 316-323 (2000)
DOI: 10.1051/analusis:2000121

Determination of selenium in rat brain by synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence

N. Schulmann-Choron1, P. Chevallier2, J. de Ceaurriz3 and Ch. Souleau1

1  Laboratoire de Chimie Physique Minérale et Bioinorganique, Faculté de Pharmacie de Châtenay-Malabry, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 92296 Châtenay-Malabry Cedex, France
2  LPS, Laboratoire Pierre Süe, CEA/CNRS, CEA Saclay, LURE (Laboratoire pour l'Utilisation du Rayonnement Electromagnétique), Centre Universitaire Paris-Sud, 91898 Orsay Cedex, France
3  Laboratoire de Toxicologie de l'Environnement, Faculté de Pharmacie de Châtenay-Malabry, 5 rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 92296 Châtenay-Malabry Cedex, France


(Received December 10, 1999; revised March 30, 2000; accepted June 6, 2000.)

Abstract
Selenium, an ubiquitous essential trace-element, is known to be particularly difficult to measure especially in brain. First, it is a non metal, next, at very low concentration (below ppm); at last, the brain matter, very rich in lipids, make the digestion specially uneasy. Using synchrotron radiation induced X-ray fluorescence analysis (SXRF), selenium in rat brain was measured equal to ${\rm C_{Se}}$ = 124 $\pm$ 5.4 ppb with a MDL (minimum detection limit) of 20 ppb. The obtained values should be used as a first step to study human brain on extremely small and specific locations. With the development of aging pathologies (such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease...), it matters to get informations about selenium known as an anti-aging element. The obtained values from rat, near of man's, may also highlight it as a potential animal model system for studying selenium in human brain.


Key words: Selenium -- brain -- rat -- X-ray fluorescence -- synchrotron.


© EDP Sciences, Wiley-VCH 2000