Effects of glutamine against oxidative stress in the metabolome of rats—new insight

Abstract

Glutamine exerts potential functions against the harmful effects of oxidative stress on animals. However, the systemic metabolic changes related to oxidative stress and glutamine intervention remain largely unknown. Rats were fed a basal diet or a basal diet supplemented with 1% glutamine for 30 days. On day 28, the rats were intraperitoneally injected with either diquat or saline. Oxidative stress alters common systemic metabolic processes, including energy, amino acid, and gut microbiota metabolisms. Compared with the diquat group, the glutamine + diquat group had significantly higher plasma levels of citrate and isobutyrate and urine levels of homogentisate and α-ketoglutarate while lower plasma levels of acetate, creatine, formate, glutamate, leucine, O-acetyl glycoprotein, phenylalanine, pyruvate, α-glucose, and β-glucose and urine levels of benzoate and trigonelline. Glutamine can partially counteract the metabolic effects of oxidative stress. These findings provide new insights into the complex metabolic changes after glutamine supplementation in rats under oxidative stress.