Key points from article :
Upon muscle damage or during aging, the normal levels of glutamine in the muscle decrease.
Researchers identify inhibitor of GLUD1 (an enzyme that metabolizes glutamine) which fosters the release of glutamine, improves muscle regeneration and prevents degeneration.
Inhibiting GLUD1 could prevent the post-injury drop in glutamine. This resulted in the overproduction of glutamine by inflammatory cells.
The newly produced glutamine could be used by muscle stem cells to quickly regenerate the damaged muscle tissue.
"We found the same thing in acute as well as chronic degenerative conditions, such as aging, leading to a faster muscle recovery" - Dr. Berardi.
"This provides hope for the treatment of degenerative muscle conditions, including trauma, ischemia and aging. We are currently developing and testing more selective GLUD1 inhibitors" -Prof. Mazzone.
Research by (VIB) Flanders Institute for Biotechnology published in nature.
