BIOC 311 Lecture Notes - Lecture 21: Glutamine Synthetase, Glutaminase, Urea Cycle
12 Feb 2020
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Glutamine is the main storage source of nh3 in the body. Peripheral tissues (i. e. not the liver) contain glutamine synthetase, which uses atp to activate glutamate and have it attack ammonia. Glutaminase converts the glutamine that was released by peripheral tissue back to glutamate + Nh3 in the liver, and the nh3 enters the urea cycle. The balance of glutamine in the body is determined by the actions of glutamine synthetase and glutaminase. Converts glutamate to glutamine by adding an amine group. Synthetase: used atp to activate the glutamate to enable it to make a nucleophilic attack on nh3. Found in the liver: because this is the organ that contains the urea cycle. Hydrolyses the nh3+ off the glutamate (aka uses h2o) Important because it"s involved with converting molecules between being keto acids and amino acids: amino acid vs keto acid: Carbon of amino acid is an amino group. Carbon of the keto acid is a ketone (*gasp*)
