• Magnesium is essential for the immune sy

    From ScienceDaily@1:317/3 to All on Wed Jan 19 21:30:36 2022
    Magnesium is essential for the immune system, including in the fight
    against cancer

    Date:
    January 19, 2022
    Source:
    University of Basel
    Summary:
    The level of magnesium in the blood is an important factor
    in the immune system's ability to tackle pathogens and cancer
    cells. Researchers have reported that T cells need a sufficient
    quantity of magnesium in order to operate efficiently. Their
    findings may have important implications for cancer patients.



    FULL STORY ==========================================================================
    The level of magnesium in the blood is an important factor in the immune system's ability to tackle pathogens and cancer cells. Writing in the
    journal Cell, researchers from the University of Basel and University
    Hospital Basel have reported that T cells need a sufficient quantity
    of magnesium in order to operate efficiently. Their findings may have
    important implications for cancer patients.


    ========================================================================== Magnesium deficiency is associated with a variety of diseases, such
    as infections and cancer. Previous studies have shown that cancerous
    growths spread faster in the bodies of mice when the animals received
    a low-magnesium diet -- and that their defense against flu viruses was
    also impaired. However, there has so far been little research into how
    exactly this mineral affects the immune system.

    Now, researchers led by Professor Christoph Hess, from the Department of Biomedicine at the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel and
    the Department of Medicine at the University of Cambridge, have discovered
    that T cells can eliminate abnormal or infected cells efficiently only
    in a magnesium- rich environment. Specifically, magnesium is important
    for the function of a T cell surface protein called LFA-1.

    LFA-1 acts as a docking site, which plays a key role in the activation of
    T cells. "However, in the inactive state this docking site is in a bent conformation and thus cannot efficiently bind to infected or abnormal
    cells," Christoph Hess explains. "This is where magnesium comes into
    play. If magnesium is present in sufficient quantities in the vicinity
    of the T cells, it binds to LFA-1 and ensures that it remains in an
    extended -- and therefore active - - position." Potentially important
    findings for cancer patients The fact that magnesium is essential for the functioning of T cells may be a highly significant finding for modern
    cancer immunotherapies. These therapies aim to mobilize the immune
    system -- in particular cytotoxic T cells -- to fight cancer cells. In experimental models, the researchers were able to show that the immune
    response of T cells against cancer cells was strengthened by an increase
    in the local magnesium concentration in tumors.

    "In order to verify this observation clinically, we're now looking for
    ways to increase the concentration of magnesium in tumors in a targeted manner," Christoph Hess says. The promising nature of these strategies is demonstrated by further analyses performed by the research team working
    with Christoph Hess and his Postdoc, Dr. Jonas Lo"tscher, lead author
    of the study. Using data from previously completed studies of cancer
    patients, the researchers were able to show that immunotherapies were
    less effective in patients with insufficient levels of magnesium in
    their blood.

    Whether a regular intake of magnesium impacts the risk for developing
    cancer is a question that cannot be answered based on the existing data,
    says Lo"tscher.

    "As a next step, we're planning prospective studies to test the
    clinical effect of magnesium as a catalyst for the immune system." ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Basel. Note: Content
    may be edited for style and length.


    ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
    1. Jonas Lo"tscher, Adria`-Arnau Marti' i Li'ndez, Nicole Kirchhammer,
    Elisabetta Cribioli, Greta Giordano, Marcel P. Trefny, Markus Lenz,
    Sacha I. Rothschild, Paolo Strati, Marco Ku"nzli, Claudia Lotter,
    Susanne H.

    Schenk, Philippe Dehio, Jordan Lo"liger, Ludivine Litzler, David
    Schreiner, Victoria Koch, Nicolas Page, Dahye Lee, Jasmin Gra"hlert,
    Dmitry Kuzmin, Anne-Vale'rie Burgener, Doron Merkler, Miklos Pless,
    Maria L. Balmer, Walter Reith, Jo"rg Huwyler, Melita Irving,
    Carolyn G. King, Alfred Zippelius, Christoph Hess. Magnesium
    sensing via LFA-1 regulates CD8 T cell effector function. Cell,
    2022; DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.12.039 ==========================================================================

    Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220119121455.htm

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