SLC38A1

Amino acid transporters play essential roles in the uptake of nutrients, production of energy, chemical metabolism, detoxification, and neurotransmitter cycling. SLC38A1 is an important transporter of glutamine, an intermediate in the detoxification of ammonia and the production of urea. Glutamine serves as a precursor for the synaptic transmitter, glutamate (Gu et al., 2001 [PubMed 11325958]).[supplied by OMIM, Mar 2008]

Full Name

Solute Carrier Family 38 Member 1

Function

Symporter that cotransports short-chain neutral amino acids and sodium ions from the extraccellular to the intracellular side of the cell membrane (PubMed:20599747, PubMed:10891391).
The transport is elctrogenic, pH dependent and driven by the Na+ electrochemical gradient (PubMed:10891391).
Participates in the astroglia-derived glutamine transport into GABAergic interneurons for neurotransmitter GABA de novo synthesis (By similarity).
May also contributes to amino acid transport in placental trophoblasts (PubMed:20599747).
Also regulates synaptic plasticity (PubMed:12388062).

Biological Process

Biological Process amino acid importISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process amino acid transmembrane transportManual Assertion Based On ExperimentIBA:GO_Central
Biological Process amino acid transportTAS:Reactome
Biological Process female pregnancyIEA:Ensembl
Biological Process gamma-aminobutyric acid biosynthetic processISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process glutamine metabolic processISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process glutamine transportISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process L-alpha-amino acid transmembrane transportISS:ARUK-UCL
Biological Process neurotransmitter uptakeTAS:Reactome
Biological Process neutral amino acid transportISS:ARUK-UCL
Biological Process positive regulation of L-glutamine import across plasma membraneISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process regulation of synaptic plasticityISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process regulation of synaptic transmission, GABAergicISS:UniProtKB
Biological Process transport across blood-brain barrier2 PublicationsNAS:ARUK-UCL

Cellular Location

Cell membrane
Restricted to the somatodendritic compartment of neurons. Found in the cellular processes of neurons in the developing brain.

PTM

N-glycosylation plays an important role in the L-glutamine transport.