Effect of sodium selenite on the synthesis of glucosinolates and antioxidant capacity in Chinese cabbage ( L.ssp.).

Chinese cabbage ( ssp. ) is a globally cultivated and consumed leafy vegetable due to its abundant plant secondary metabolites and antioxidant compounds, including flavonoids, ascorbic acids, glucosinolates, and vitamins, which have been reported to confer health-promoting effects. Glucosinolates components in leaves of Chinese cabbage plantlets under different concentrations of sodium selenite (0, 30, and 50 μmol/L) were analyzed. Seven glucosinolates were identified and quantified using UHPLC-QTOF-MS. Finally, treatments with 30 and 50 μmol/L NaSeO solution significantly increased the levels of total selenium content as well as total phenols, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and DPPH free radical scavenging ability in Chinese cabbage seedlings. Our results revealed that 30 μmol/L NaSeO effectively enhanced aliphatic glucosinolate levels and total glucosinolate content while causing a significant reduction in indole glucosinolates. Furthermore, downregulation was observed for , , and genes associated with aliphatic glucosinolate synthesis. Conversely, and genes exhibited significant upregulation. Thus, the positive influence of NaSeO on glucosinolate biosynthesis in Chinese cabbage can be attributed to the upregulation of key genes related to this process.