The transaminase-ω-amidase pathway is a redox switch in glutamine metabolism that generates α-ketoglutarate

Oxidative stress is caused by short-lived molecules and metabolic changes belong to the fastest cellular responses. Here we studied how the endothelial cell metabolome reacts to acute oxidative challenges (menadione or H ₂ O ₂ ) to identify redox-sensitive metabolic enzymes. H ₂ O ₂ selectively increased α-ketoglutara ma te (αKGM), a largely uncharacterized metabolite produced by glutamine transamination and a yet unrecognized intermediate of endothelial glutamine catabolism. The enzyme nitrilase-like 2 ω-amidase (NIT2) converts αKGM to α-ketoglutarate (αKG). Reversible oxidation of specific cysteine in NIT2 by H ₂ O ₂ inhibited its catalytic activity. Furthermore, a variant in the NIT2 gene that decreases its expression is associated with high plasma αKGM level in humans. Endothelial-specific knockout mice of NIT2 exhibited increased levels of αKGM and impaired angiogenesis. Knockout of NIT2 impaired endothelial cell proliferation and sprouting and induced senescence. In conclusion, we show that the glutamine transaminase-ω-amidase pathway is a metabolic switch in which NIT2 is the redox-sensitive enzyme. The pathway is modulated in humans and functionally important for endothelial glutamine metabolism.