Abstract
Reduced magnesium (Mg) intake is a frequent cause of deficiency with age together with reduced absorption, renal wasting, and polypharmacotherapy. Chronic Mg deficiency may result in increased oxidative stress and low-grade inflammation, which may be linked to several age-related diseases, including higher predisposition to infectious diseases. Mg might play a role in the immune response being a cofactor for immunoglobulin synthesis and other processes strictly associated with the function of T and B cells. Mg is necessary for the biosynthesis, transport, and activation of vitamin D, another key factor in the pathogenesis of infectious diseases. The regulation of cytosolic free Mg in immune cells involves Mg transport systems, such as the melastatin-like transient receptor potential 7 channel, the solute carrier family, and the magnesium transporter 1 (MAGT1). The functional importance of Mg transport in immunity was unknown until the description of the primary immunodeficiency XMEN (X-linked immunodeficiency with Mg defect, Epstein–Barr virus infection, and neoplasia) due to a genetic deficiency of MAGT1 characterized by chronic Epstein–Barr virus infection. This and other research reporting associations of Mg deficit with viral and bacterial infections indicate a possible role of Mg deficit in the recent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its complications. In this review, we will discuss the importance of Mg for the immune system and for infectious diseases, including the recent pandemic of COVID-19.
Highlights
About eleven thousand years ago, with the introduction of agriculture, the human beings radically modified their way of living from the remote and primitive hunter–gatherer organization towards a new form of more sedentary cohabitation, which included the domestication of animals
We reported the potential role of Mg in infectious diseases, those affecting older people, a population frequently affected by deficiency of this fundamental cation
The evidence regarding the importance of Mg in these kinds of diseases is derived from animal models reporting that low-Mg diets were associated with an unfavorable profile in the immune response, oxidative stress, and inflammatory markers
Summary
About eleven thousand years ago, with the introduction of agriculture, the human beings radically modified their way of living from the remote and primitive hunter–gatherer organization towards a new form of more sedentary cohabitation, which included the domestication of animals. The new epidemiological scenario allowed the coexistence of microorganisms, wild and domestic animals, and the human beings, which is recognized as the origin of the most important human infectious diseases [1] These diseases can only be sustained in large dense human populations that did not exist anywhere in the world before agriculture. Mg exists in three forms: a protein-bound fraction (25% bound to albumin and 8% bound to globulins), a chelated fraction (12%), and the metabolically active ionized fraction (55%) [5,6] For all these reasons, Mg is a critical factor for normal cellular and body homeostasis, including the processes involving the immune system. We will discuss the importance of Mg for the immune system and for infectious diseases, including the recent pandemic of COVID-19, with particular focus on older populations
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