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Hepatic Glutamine and Ammonia Metabolism

Nitrogen and Redox Balance and the Intercellular Glutamine Cycle

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Glutamine Metabolism in Mammalian Tissues

Abstract

Our interest in glutamine metabolism arose from an investigation of mitochondrial NADPH/NADP+ as affected during the metabolism of ammonia in the process of ureogenesis [1, 2 ]. Glutamine served as a compound yielding ammonia plus glutamate within the mitochondria via the activity of mitochondrial glutaminase, whereas added ammonia yielded glutamate only at the expense of 2-oxoglutarate via reductive animation [3]. Clearly, such model experiments on redox compartmentation have a physiological bearing, because the effects occur at portal concentrations of ammonia and glutamine within the physiological range of about 0.3 mM and 0.6 mM, respectively [4]. Thus, this article will present the redox transitions related to this important sector of nitrogen metabolism.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Physiologische Chemie I, Universität Düsseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 4000, Düsseldorf, Germany

    H. Sies

  2. Medizinische Universitätsklinik, Hugstetterstr. 55, 7800, Freiburg, Germany

    D. Häussinger

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  1. H. Sies
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  2. D. Häussinger
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Medizinische Universitätsklinik, Hugstetterstraße 55, 7800, Freiburg, Germany

    Dieter Häussinger

  2. Institut für Physiologische Chemie I, Universität Düsseldorf, Moorenstraβe 5, 4000, Düsseldorf, Germany

    Helmut Sies

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© 1984 Springer- Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Sies, H., Häussinger, D. (1984). Hepatic Glutamine and Ammonia Metabolism. In: Häussinger, D., Sies, H. (eds) Glutamine Metabolism in Mammalian Tissues. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-69754-8_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-69754-8_6

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-69756-2

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