The results obtained by this study demonstrate the great
influence of NaN3-induced mutation on contents of minerals in the
polished grains of tested rice mutants. However, the frequency
distributions of the contents of examined minerals departed from
normality, with the peaks skewed toward the left (relatively lower
mineral contents). As a result, the prospect of selecting NaN3-
induced mutants with high contents of essential minerals is very
limited. But the magnitude of variation among the examined
minerals in the polished grains of those NaN3-induced mutants
was significant. Two selected mutants, M-IR-75 and M-IR-58,
accumulated considerably higher levels of Fe in their polished
grains than the wild type cultivar IR64. Additionally, three selected
mutants, M-IR-80, M-IR-49 and M-IR-75, accumulated more Zn
than the wild type cultivar IR64. Thus, the mutant M-IR-75 can be
recommended to rice farmers for producing polished Fe-rich rice
grains in order to alleviate anemia caused by Fe deficiency in areas
where polished rice is consumed as a staple food. Moreover, the
high-Fe (M-IR-75 and M-IR-58) and high-Zn (M-IR-180, M-IR-49
and M-IR-175) mutants can be used as genetic resources for rice
improvement programs.