A simple enzymic method for the measurement of magnesium in serum and urine on a centrifugal analyser.

A method is described based on a reaction that requires magnesium-ATP as a co-factor for the activity of hexokinase (HK), coupled with glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH). Glucose and NADP are converted to D-gluconolactone 6-phosphate and NADPH, respectively. The rate of increase in absorbance at 340 nm due to the formation of NADPH is proportional to the magnesium concentration in the sample. Magnesium levels in serum and urine measured by the enzymic method compared well with those obtained by atomic absorption spectrometry. The within-batch precisions were 1.4% and 1.5% for the enzymic method and the atomic absorption method, respectively for a quality assurance sample with a magnesium concentration of 2 mmol/L. The enzymic method is accurate (recoveries of added magnesium to serum samples are 101-102%), reproducible (between batch CV 2.8%), and rapid (23 samples may be measured in 10 min). Data on accuracy, precision and correlation for the enzymic and atomic absorption methods are presented.