Placental calcium transport during acute maternal hypermagnesemia in the rat

Abstract

Our aim was to test the hypothesis that maternofetal placental calcium transfer rate decreases in experimentally induced acute maternal hypermagnesemia in the rat. We measured the unidirectional maternofetal clearance of calcium 45 and chromium 51-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid across in situ perfused placentas of rats randomized to intravenous treatment with saline solution and magnesium sulfate (n = 5) or to saline solution only (n = 5) before placental perfusion. The maternofetal clearance of chromium 51-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid provides a measure of placental "porosity" or passive permeability. The mean serum magnesium concentration increased to 5.3 +/- 0.6 mg/dl (2.18 +/- 0.25 mmol/L) in magnesium-infused rats, staying at 1.8 +/- 0.1 mg/dl (0.74 +/- 0.04 mmol/L) in control rats (p < 0.001). Neither the maternofetal clearance of calcium 45 nor that of chromium 51-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid was affected by acute maternal hypermagnesemia. Within the range of hypermagnesemia studied, placental calcium transport remains unaffected.