title: Glutamine and intestinal barrier function.
abstract: The intestinal barrier integrity is essential for the absorption of nutrients and health in humans and animals. Dysfunction of the mucosal barrier is associated with increased gut permeability and development of multiple gastrointestinal diseases. Recent studies highlighted a critical role for glutamine, which had been traditionally considered as a nutritionally non-essential amino acid, in activating the mammalian target of rapamycin cell signaling in enterocytes. In addition, glutamine has been reported to enhance intestinal and whole-body growth, to promote enterocyte proliferation and survival, and to regulate intestinal barrier function in injury, infection, weaning stress, and other catabolic conditions. Mechanistically, these effects were mediated by maintaining the intracellular redox status and regulating expression of genes associated with various signaling pathways. Furthermore, glutamine stimulates growth of the small intestinal mucosa in young animals and also enhances ion transport by the gut in neonates and adults. Growing evidence supports the notion that glutamine is a nutritionally essential amino acid for neonates and a conditionally essential amino acid for adults. Thus, as a functional amino acid with multiple key physiological roles, glutamine holds great promise in protecting the gut from atrophy and injury under various stress conditions in mammals and other animals.
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Bin
authors: B
authors: Wang
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.|Department of Animal Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, USA.
authors: Guoyao
authors: G
authors: Wu
authors: Key Laboratory for Feed Biotechnology of the Ministry of Agriculture, Feed Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors: Zhigang
authors: Z
authors: Zhou
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Zhaolai
authors: Z
authors: Dai
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Yuli
authors: Y
authors: Sun
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Yun
authors: Y
authors: Ji
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Wei
authors: W
authors: Li
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Weiwei
authors: W
authors: Wang
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Chuang
authors: C
authors: Liu
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors: Feng
authors: F
authors: Han
authors: State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China. bio2046@hotmail.com.
authors: Zhenlong
authors: Z
authors: Wu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D005973:Glutamine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D007408:Intestinal Absorption / Q000187:drug effects*; D007422:Intestines / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D010539:Permeability / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D005973:Glutamine
keywords: Glutamine; Intestinal barrier function; Nutrition