A direct quantitative analysis of erythrocyte intracellular ionized magnesium in physiological and pathological conditions

Abstract

Magnesium (Mg 2+ ) is an endogenous cation that is involved in many essential biological reactions. Abnormal Mg 2+ metabolisms in the body affect important physiological and pathological processes. However, most endogenous Mg 2+ markers fail to represent body Mg 2+ status; they are disadvantageous in terms of representational capacity, applied range, operational convenience, etc. In this article, we evaluated some of the most popular Mg 2+ marker candidates. A logical model of the blood Mg 2+ compartments was established, which consisted of unstable Mg 2+ pools, representative Mg 2+ pools, and conserved Mg 2+ pools. These pools were based on the metabolic efficiency of Mg 2+ in an acute Mg 2+ intake test. The results of this study showed that only the erythrocyte intracellular ionized Mg 2+ (RBC [Mg 2+ ] i ), a representative Mg 2+ pool, could effectively represent abnormal body Mg 2+ metabolisms in various conditions, including dietary Mg 2+ adjustments, aging and metabolic syndrome. These results suggest that RBC [Mg 2+ ] i might be a widely applicable marker of body Mg 2+ levels. On unified technology platform and evaluation system, this research compared the representative capacities of RBC [Mg 2+ ] i , plasma Mg 2+ concentration (plasma [Mg 2+ ]), erythrocyte intracellular total Mg (RBC [Mg] total ) and Mg retention in rats and mice under various Mg 2+ -metabolism-related physiological and pathological conditions. Our technique for the direct quantitative analysis of RBC [Mg 2+ ] i may prove valuable for basic physiological research, dietary Mg 2+ regulation, as well as clinical monitoring/ intervention of Mg 2+ -metabolism-related pathology.