ABSTRACT
Serum was required as an essential component of culture media to provide hormones, growth factors, and other nutrients including trace elements. Small molecular weight molecules such as Selenium (Se) can removed from serum by dialysis prior to its addition to culture medium. The use of culture media has facilitated the simple design and interpretation of experiments which would otherwise be difficult or impossible to carry out in serum-containing medium. The concentrations of Se at which signs of deficiency or toxicity occur vary depending on a number of factors including the cell or tissue type used, its selenium status, the composition of the culture medium, the form of selenium added to the culture medium, the duration of the experiment, and the parameter used to study the effects of Se. Oxygenation of the medium is another important consideration in experiments which involve the study of Se. A minimal amount of oxygen is essential for the multiplication of most cell types in culture.
