The benefits of glutamine in the treatment of patients with cancer

Abstract

The subject of this study is the benefits of immunonutrition or immunomodulation, based on the concept that malnutrition impairs immune function. It is a therapeutic approach in an artificial form of food with the function of rebuilding cells for the immune response, which involves specific amino acids such as arginine, glutamine, and fiber. In this sense, it is intended to deal specifically with glutamine, which is a “conditionally essential” amino acid, as its concentration in plasma can decrease by up to 50% during stress, causing a deficiency condition. In the treatment of cancer patients, glutamine constitutes an immunomodulatory nutrient, being a fundamental substrate for the cells of the immune system, stimulating the multiplication of lymphocytes, the differentiation of B cells, the production of interleukin 1, and the phagocytosis of macrophages. The high use of glutamine by lymphocytes and macrophages suggests that the provision of this amino acid is of paramount importance for the functioning of these cells and also for the proper functioning of the immune response. Important in viral infections and in combating tumor cells, Natural Killer (NK) cells are dependent on adequate glutamine stores for their proliferation. It also exerts a local immunostimulating effect, increasing intestinal T cells, and is a precursor of an important intracellular antioxidant, glutathione. This is bibliographical research, of a qualitative nature, carried out through specialized scientific articles on the chosen topic.