Hyperphosphatemia, hypocalcemia and increased serum potassium concentration as distinctive features of early hypomagnesemia in magnesium-deprived mice.

Magnesium-deficient patients show dysfunctional calcium (Ca(2+)) metabolism due to defective parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion. In mice and rats, long-term magnesium (Mg(2+)) deprivation causes hyperphosphaturia and increases fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) secretion, despite normal serum phosphate (Pi) and Ca(2+). Electrolyte disturbances during early hypomagnesemia may explain the response of mice to long-term Mg(2+) deprivation, but our knowledge of electrolyte homeostasis during this stage is limited.