Abstract
Requirements for trace minerals in camels, particularly selenium, are not well-known. Selenium supplementation using a pharmaceutical form or commercial mineral mixture is common practice in camels to address the cardiomyopathy often attributed to selenium deficiency. This supplementation is often empirical and based on estimated needs for cattle. Nowadays the use of selenium in animal foodstuffs is commonplace and further investigation of its metabolism (ingestion, dynamic of storage-destocking, excretion) in camels is warranted. The present review aimed to synthesize all the experimental research (comparative selenium status in cow and camel, response to different levels of supplementation at different physiological stages, excretion maternal transfer, experimental toxicosis) and field observations (deficiency, supplementation practices) undertaken in camels. The results underline the particularity of the unique metabolic profile of the camel and lead to practical recommendations for supplementation in camels, highlighting its relative sensitivity to excess Se intake at lower levels than in cattle. The maximal tolerable dose is 8 mg and the recommended doses range from 2 to 4 mg.
Highlights
Camels have some physiological peculiarities in their trace element metabolism due to their adaptation to arid conditions and poor mineral feeding resources [1,2]
The present study aims at giving a progress report on current knowledge concerning the status of selenium and its metabolism in the dromedary based on all data available in the scientific literature
Selenium deficiency has been suspected to occur in camels kept in zoological parks affected by cardiopathy or myopathy [24,25,26], but no clinical descriptions and laboratory analysis have been made in these reports to confirm the role of selenium
Summary
Camels have some physiological peculiarities in their trace element metabolism due to their adaptation to arid conditions and poor mineral feeding resources [1,2]. The adaptation to desert life means an addition of small metabolic improvements which provide no comparative advantage when they are considered one by one, but give a full meaning to the reputation of this species when they are considered as a whole. This probably explains why the camel is able to survive under desert conditions. The present study aims at giving a progress report on current knowledge concerning the status of selenium and its metabolism in the dromedary based on all data available in the scientific literature
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