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Biomedical subjects

E B Flink

Publications and source records attributed to E B Flink.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Nutritional aspects of magnesium metabolism.

The absolute necessity for magnesium in plant and animal nutrition is easily appreciated when one realizes that magnesium is found in high concentration in cells. It is necessary for photosynthesis in plants and for all reactions involving adenosine triphosphate in plant and animal cells. Although it is abundant in nature in general, deficiencies occur in both plants and animals. Human beings need about 5 mg of magnesium per kg of body weight per day. Infants and young children need twice as much. Children and women during pregnancy or lactation require significantly greater amounts than normal adults. Various diseases result in a deficiency of magnesium because of interruption of food intake or intestinal or renal wasting of the mineral.

Adult↗

Relationship of free fatty acids and magnesium in ethanol withdrawal in dogs.

A group of dogs was conditioned to drink 4-6 g ethanol/kg/day for long periods. Ethanol ingestion was interrupted at monthly intervals in order to study some metabolic changes of the withdrawal period. Plasma long chain free fatty acids (FFA) increased by a maximum mean of 1.4 meq/liter (threefold), and magnesium (Mg) decreased by a maximum mean of 0.4 meq/liter (75% of control during the first 24 hr of simple ethanol withdrawal. Because magnesium salts of FFA are very insoluble, these divergent changes of Mg and FFA suggest that lipolysis may be responsible for the hypomagnesemia that occurs in ethanol withdrawal. In order to control lipolysis, glucose-insulin, glucose alone, and fructose alone were given intravenously for a 4-hr period beginning 14 hr after withdrawal. FFA fell by a maximum of 65% or 0.44 meq/liter and Mg fell by a maximum of 0.31 meq/liter during the glucose-insulin infusions. Nicotinic acid (10-20 mg/kg) in saline produced an identical drop in FFA and a slight rise in Mg. After stopping the nicotinic acid infusion, a sharp rebound rise in FFA and a sharp fall in Mg occurred similar to the simple withdrawal experiments. The sharp divergent changes in FFA and Mg after cessation of nicotinic acid infusion support the prime role of FFA-effecting movements of Mg and the thesis that FFA bind Mg. Control of lipolysis is theoretically sound in therapy of the ethanol withdrawal syndrome.

Alcoholism↗