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Use of Ion Selective Microelectrodes to Measure Intracellular Free Mg2+

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Mg2+ and Excitable Membranes

Abstract

Mg2+ has been dubbed “the forgotten cation” (Brady et al. 1987) for although it is the second most common intracellular cation, the study of its homeostasis and its regulatory function in health and disease has long been neglected. Gradually, however, it is becoming clear that Mg2+ plays an important intracellular role: It is a co-factor in numerous enzymatic reactions, has a regulatory function on several ionic channels, influences Ca2+ uptake into the mitochondria and K+ uptake by skeletal muscle, and may play a crucial role in cardiovascular disease (see reviews by Altura 1988; Elin 1988; Shils 1988; Lauter 1989; White and Hartzeil 1989; Review in Am J Med 1987).

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Author notes

  1. Lothar A. Blatter

    Present address: Department of Physiology, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Physiology, Bühlplatz 5, CH-3012, Berne, Switzerland

    John A. S. McGuigan, Lothar A. Blatter & Arlette Buri

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  1. John A. S. McGuigan
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  2. Lothar A. Blatter
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  3. Arlette Buri
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© 1991 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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McGuigan, J.A.S., Blatter, L.A., Buri, A. (1991). Use of Ion Selective Microelectrodes to Measure Intracellular Free Mg2+ . In: Mg2+ and Excitable Membranes. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-75636-8_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-75636-8_1

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-75638-2

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