Magnesium and cell cycle control: an update.

Accumulating evidence, from bacteria to human cells, points to a universal role for magnesium in controlling the cell cycle. In microorganisms, the co-ordinate sequence of events which culminate in biomass doubling and cell division may be modulated through expression of differential magnesium effects during the cell cycle. For example, it has been suggested in bacteria that growth and cell division may possess different affinities for magnesium; whilst in yeast, cell cycle-dependent fluxes in intracellular magnesium are postulated to regulate cell proliferation. In mammalian cells, magnesium is important in governing key rate-limiting steps in the cell cycle, particularly at the onset of DNA synthesis and at mitosis. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that cell transformation may cause selective loss of this regulatory role for magnesium, implying that magnesium is important in oncogenesis and perhaps in the expression of malignancy.