Biogeochemical study of bioactive trace elements including selenium

Abstract

Trace elements in seawater and defined as those present at concentrations below 1 mg/L. Many of these elements as essential for sustaining functions. It is well established that several essential trace elements serve as catalytic in enzymes. For example, selenium acts as the active site element in glutathione peroxidase. Unlike major components such as chloride and sodium, the concentrations of these essential trace elements vary significantly among the world's oceans and even with depth, making their accurate analysis historically detection limits of analytical instruments, and development of desalination and concentration methods have enabled more reliable measurements to be reported. This study discusses the marine distributions and controlling factors of selenium which exists in three dissolved species, as well as GEOTRACES key parameters including aluminum, manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel, zinc, copper, cadmium, and lead.