ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses glutamine biochemistry, metabolism, and transport as well as the molecular underpinnings of increased glutamine consumption in rapidly proliferating cells. It describes the properties of the glutamine transporters and the implication of some of them in supporting the growth of tumors. The names of the glutamine transporter proteins are less rooted in formal genetic rubrics and are typically acronyms reflective of their functional characteristics or family. The chapter provides the prospects for exploiting its deranged physiology and biochemistry in cancer for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. Glutamine transport and metabolism serve a multitude of essential roles in human physiology, so the targeting glutamine per se for cancer therapy has been difficult with regard to specificity. Cell proliferation likewise obviously plays a central role in tumorigenesis; alteration of glutamine metabolism in cancer has garnered progressively. Tumors have been characterized as “glutamine sinks” as their consumption of the amino acid is typically excessive relative to normal tissue.