The fungistatic activity of organic selenium and its application to the production of cultivated mushrooms Agaricus bisporus and Pleurotus spp.

The activity of organic selenium against pathogenic molds and its use as a potential selenium source in the production of enriched mushrooms were examined. The effect of commercial selenized yeast on mycelia growth was examined using a method with mycelia disks and a well diffusion method. For mushroom enrichment, different concentrations of selenium were added to a growth substrate. The results presented in this paper suggest that the most suitable concentration of selenized yeast that inhibits the growth of the mycopathogenic molds is 70-100 mg/kg of selenium. With the addition of this concentration to the substrate, mushroom fruit bodies will uptake a high level of selenium, about 100 ?g/g for Pleurotus spp., and 200 ?g/g for Agaricus bisporus in dry weight of the mushroom. Thereby a double effect in the cultivation of mushrooms is achieved.