Inhibition of mouse-killing behaviour in magnesium-deficient rats: effect of pharmacological doses of magnesium pidolate, magnesium aspartate, magnesium lactate, magnesium gluconate and magnesium chloride.

Magnesium deprivation induced interspecific aggressive behaviour (muricidal behaviour) in rats undoubtedly attributable to magnesium deficiency since magnesium chloride, by correcting magnesium deficiency, suppressed it. Inhibition of magnesium deficiency-induced behaviour by various magnesium salts should enable the classification of the therapeutic effects of these salts. Consequently we compared the effects of various magnesium salts used therapeutically on the inhibition of the acute muricidal behaviour induced by magnesium deficiency. All the magnesium salts used (chloride, pidolate, aspartate, gluconate, lactate) suppressed the muricidal behaviour. There was no significant difference in the duration of the treatment needed to inhibit this comportment for each of the salts studied. In contrast, significant differences appeared, concerning the different phases of muricidal behaviour. Magnesium pidolate significantly increased the attack latency (P < 0.05). By repeating the muricidal assays, we showed that magnesium pidolate treated rats had a muricidal behaviour rate which was lower than that of the other magnesium salt-treated rat groups. Consequently, it can be assumed that all the magnesium salts used had an acute anti-muricidal, perhaps anti-stress, effect and that magnesium pidolate presented, on this experimental model the greatest efficacy.