Magnesium for T cells: strong to the finish!

Santosha Vardhana; Michael L Dustin

doi:10.1016/j.it.2022.02.004

Magnesium for T cells: strong to the finish!

Trends Immunol. 2022 Apr;43(4):277-279. doi: 10.1016/j.it.2022.02.004. Epub 2022 Mar 5.

Authors

Santosha Vardhana¹, Michael L Dustin²

Affiliations

¹ Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA. Electronic address: vardhans@mskcc.org.
² Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. Electronic address: michael.dustin@kennedy.ox.ac.uk.

PMID: 35260350
DOI: 10.1016/j.it.2022.02.004

Abstract

'Popeye, the Sailor' cartoons taught children that eating spinach boosts strength and helps defend against bullies. Lötscher and colleagues report that dietary deficiency of magnesium ions (Mg²⁺), against which eating spinach is an excellent antidote, impairs the activity of a key adhesion molecule, LFA-1, and hinders the ability of CD8⁺ T cells to grapple with assorted bullies, such as tumors and bacteria.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Comment

MeSH terms

CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes*
Cell Adhesion Molecules
Child
Humans
Lymphocyte Function-Associated Antigen-1
Magnesium*

Substances

Cell Adhesion Molecules
Lymphocyte Function-Associated Antigen-1
Magnesium