Arsenic and Selenium

You should listen to this podcast from Quirks and Quarks about how University of Calgary scientist Judit Smits is trying to use selenium rich lentils from Saskatchewan, Canada to treat arsenic poisoning in Bangladesh. Well water in parts of rural Bangladesh have high levels of natural arsenic and this is a major health problem. Professor Smits, who is actually in the department of veterinary medicine, has done work using arsenic to treat selenium poisoning in animals. It turns out that arsenic and selenium, both of which can be toxic in high doses, effectively neutralize each other. They each seem to increase excretion of the other into the bile. So she hypothesized that selenium might counter arsenic poisoning but the interaction is nontrivial so it is not a certainty that it would work. Dr. Smits organized a study to transport ten tons of lentils from Canada to Saskatchewan this past summer to test the hypothesis and you can hear about the trials and tribulations of getting the study done. The results are not yet in but I think this is a perfect example of how cleverness combined with determination can make a real difference. This study is funded entirely from Canadian sources but it sounds like something the Gates and Clinton foundations could be interested in.