RESUMO
The aim of this paper is to review nutritional aspects about this amino acid. Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in the body. It is a neutral glucogenic amino acid that can be synthesized in the body by a wide variety of tissues rich in glutamine syntetase. Glutamine may promote muscle protein synthesis. Furthermore, glutamine is the principal carrier of nitrogen in the body, as it comprises approximately 50% of the whole-body pool of free amino acid. It is considered to be a major fuels for many cells including enterocytes, reticulocytes, stimulated lymphocytes, fibroblast and malignant cells. These cells share the common characteristics of relative rapid growth rates, high glicolitic rates, relative poor glucose oxidative capacity, and high glutaminase activity. In some clinical conditions, however, like trauma and sepsis, glutamine concentrations in tissues is decreased. These may have serious consequences for the organism, such as decreased in protein synthesis and impairement of the barrier functions of the mucosa of the gastrointestinal tract, and thereby contributy to the development of sepsis in catabolic patients. Infusion of glutamine may have therapeutic value in such conditions.