Molecular Plant Breeding 2024, Vol.15, No.6, 328-339 http://genbreedpublisher.com/index.php/mpb 329 selenium-enriched products, providing essential contributions to the selenium cycle within ecosystems (Xie et al., 2020; Chen et al., 2023; Yang et al., 2024). The role of selenium in plants has garnered extensive research interest, particularly regarding its potential to enhance stress tolerance and improve crop quality. Selenium can scavenge excess free radicals in plants, increasing resistance to adverse conditions such as salinity, heavy metal contamination, and drought, while also optimizing the nutritional composition and flavor characteristics of fruits (Hasanuzzaman et al., 2020; Huang et al., 2018). In strawberries, the biofortification potential of selenium and its role in enhancing stress tolerance have become research hotspots in recent years (Iqbal et al., 2022; Yuan et al., 2024). However, the comprehensive mechanisms underlying selenium’s dual role in improving strawberry stress tolerance and quality remain insufficiently studied. This study systematically analyzes the integrated mechanisms of selenium (Se) in enhancing strawberry stress tolerance and quality. It explores selenium’s specific roles in alleviating multiple stress conditions in strawberries and evaluates its potential applications in agricultural production. The study findings will further clarify the critical role of selenium in strawberry production, provide a scientific foundation for the development of selenium-enriched strawberry varieties, and serve as an important reference for promoting sustainable agricultural practices and the cultivation of high-quality crops. 2 Mechanisms of Selenium in Enhancing Stress Tolerance in Strawberries Selenium, as a functional trace element, demonstrates significant potential in enhancing strawberries stress tolerance. By regulating physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms, selenium markedly improves strawberries resilience to adverse environmental conditions such as salinity, heavy metal contamination, and drought, while simultaneously enhancing overall growth and quality traits (Figure 1) (Heijari et al., 2006; Zahedi et al., 2019; Gui et al., 2022; Yuan et al., 2024). Selenium promotes photosynthetic efficiency, increases antioxidant enzyme activity, reduces the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and optimizes water use efficiency (WUE), thereby comprehensively boosting plant stress tolerance (Santiago et al., 2018; Lai et al., 2022). These mechanisms provide a basis and potential agricultural application value for the use of selenium in strawberries and other economically important crops. Figure 1 Effects of Se supplementation in strawberry under stress conditions 2.1 Protective effects of selenium under salt stress Selenium (Se) and its nanoparticles (Se-NPs) have demonstrated significant efficacy in alleviating the adverse effects of salt stress on strawberries. Studies indicate that Se and Se-NPs promote strawberry growth under high salinity conditions by enhancing oxidative stress tolerance, improving mineral nutrient uptake, mitigating the inhibitory effects of salt on photosynthesis, and maintaining cell membrane integrity (Nedjimi, 2024). For instance,
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