Metabolism of citrulline in man.

Citrulline is a non protein amino acid involved in three important metabolic pathways, the intrahepatic transformation of ammonia to urea, the de novo synthesis of arginine from glutamine in gut and kidney, the nitric oxide synthesis. The two first pathways use the same enzyme activities but are regulated in different way. This review describe these pathways and their regulation in different tissues. In the light of our knowledge we tried to explain the physiological and pathological (inherited or acquired) variations in man.