Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 Apr 18;22(1):89.
doi: 10.1186/s12933-023-01827-2.

L-Arginine in diabetes: clinical and preclinical evidence

Affiliations
Review

L-Arginine in diabetes: clinical and preclinical evidence

Imma Forzano et al. Cardiovasc Diabetol. .

Erratum in

  • Correction: L-Arginine in diabetes: clinical and preclinical evidence.
    Forzano I, Avvisato R, Varzideh F, Jankauskas SS, Cioppa A, Mone P, Salemme L, Kansakar U, Tesorio T, Trimarco V, Santulli G. Forzano I, et al. Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2023 May 18;22(1):117. doi: 10.1186/s12933-023-01852-1. Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2023. PMID: 37208744 Free PMC article. No abstract available.

Abstract

L-Arginine (L-Arg), is a semi-essential amino acid involved in the formation of nitric oxide. The functional relevance of L-Arg in diabetes mellitus has been evaluated both in animal models and in human subjects. In the literature there are several lines of evidence indicating that L-Arg has beneficial effects in diabetes and numerous studies advocate its administration to attenuate glucose intolerance in diabetic patients. Here we present a comprehensive overview of the main studies exploring the effects of L-Arg in diabetes, including preclinical and clinical reports on this topic.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus; Endothelial dysfunction; GLP-1; Glucose metabolism; L-Arginine; NO.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
L-Arg once in the cell can be metabolized by Arginase. The products of this enzyme are: L-Ornithine, which is further cleaved to polyamines by ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), L-proline by ornithine aminotransferase (OAT), and urea. These compounds exert negative effects on glucose metabolism. When L-Arg is cleaved in nitric oxide (NO) and L-citrulline by the nitric oxide synthase (NOS), these compounds have positive effects on glucose metabolism, also exerting beneficial action on the cardiovascular system

References

    1. Lopez MJ, Mohiuddin SS. Biochemistry, Essential Amino Acids. In: StatPearls Treasure Island (FL); 2022. - PubMed
    1. Wu G. Amino acids: metabolism, functions, and nutrition. Amino Acids. 2009;37(1):1–17. doi: 10.1007/s00726-009-0269-0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Rose WC. The role of the amino acids in human nutrition. Proc Am Philos Soc. 1947;91(1):112–6. - PubMed
    1. Wu G, Meininger CJ, McNeal CJ, Bazer FW, Rhoads JM. Role of L-Arginine in nitric oxide synthesis and health in humans. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2021;1332:167–87. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-74180-8_10. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Wu G, Morris SM Jr. Arginine metabolism: nitric oxide and beyond. Biochem J. 1998;336(Pt 1):1–17. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types