Selenosis

Seleniosis is caused by excess selenium intake, or by alterations in selenocysteine catabolism through selenocysteine beta-lyase. Selenium poisoning can be caused by intakes of this ion of more than 200 µg/day.

It is possible that this metabolic alteration interferes with the metabolism of sulfur, which acts as an important antioxidant, in many enzymes that prevent the production of free radicals in the body. Protein synthesis is decreased, since it interferes with the metabolism of some amino acids such as methionine, saturating the products and causing their reactions to be inhibited.

Symptoms of selenosis include hair and nail loss, skin lesions, tooth loss, and central nervous system abnormalities. Seleniosis in most cases is concomitant with fluorosis.