Glutamine Metabolism in Prostate Cancer

Abstract

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common malignancy in the urinary system. Research suggest that prostate cancer is often accompanied by gene mutations and metabolic reprogramming during disease progression, leading to disease advancement, metastasis, and therapeutic resistance. During metabolic reprogramming, glutamine serves as a carbon and nitrogen source to replenish the tricarboxylic acid cycle driving tumor metabolism. Among all types of amino acids, glutamine is the most widely distributed and functionally diverse in the human body. In healthy and diseased states of the human body, immune cells metabolize glutamine at a rate similar to glucose. Glutamine release and utilization in circulation are primarily controlled by organs such as the intestines, liver, and skeletal muscles. Under high catabolism such as inflammation and cancer, glutamine can become essential molecule for metabolic function, but its availability may be impaired due to disrupted homeostasis of amino acids in inter-tissue metabolism. This research briefly reviews the metabolism of glutamine in prostate cancer.