Depletion of intracellular free Mg2+ in Mg2(+)- and Ca2(+)-free solution in the taenia isolated from guinea-pig caecum.

1. In isolated strips of the taenia of guinea-pig caecum removal of Mg2+ alone from the external solution had no clear effects on contractions produced by carbachol. However, after treatment with Mg2(+)- and Ca2(+)-free solution, readmission of 2.4 mM-Ca2+ caused only limited recovery, and addition of Mg2+ was necessary for full recovery. 2. When Mg2+ was removed in the absence of Ca2+, oxygen consumption increased, but gradually decreased again in the prolonged absence of the divalent cations. The increase in O2 consumption was blocked by ouabain or by decreasing the external sodium concentration to 20 mM. 3. Under normal conditions, the intracellular free Mg2+ concentration [( Mg2+]i) was estimated to be 310 +/- 30 microM (n = 17) from the chemical shift of the ATP peaks obtained with 31P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), assuming the dissociation constant of MgATP to be 41 microM. 4. Removal of external Mg2+ did not alter [Mg2+]i within 100 min. However, when both Mg2+ and Ca2+ were omitted, [Mg2+]i decreased to 8.3 +/- 3.6 microM (n = 12) in 100 min. The [Mg2+]i recovered completely on readmission of 1.2 mM-Mg2+. 5. When Mg2+ and Ca2+ were omitted, the phosphocreatine (PCr) content of the tissue slowly decreased to about 90% and the ATP concentration was reduced to about 60% of the control in 100 min. On Mg2+ readmission the ATP levels recovered partially, whereas PCr decreased further. 6. It is concluded that free [Mg2+]i slowly decreases when both Mg2+ and Ca2+ are removed from the external solution, due to an increased permeability of the plasma membrane, and that when [Mg2+]i is reduced to less than about 10% of the normal internal concentration, energy metabolism, membrane transport, and contraction are impaired.