fig1

Figure 1. Mechanism of action of Asparginase. Illustration of the mechanism of action of asparaginase as an anti-leukemic agent. The activity of asparaginase leading to the depletion of extra-cellular asparagine and/or glutamine and eventual cell death is counteracted by the intra-cellular production of these amino acids through asparagine synthetase and glutamine synthetase, respectively. To be noted: the relative difference in size between the Asparagine and Glutamine Pathways is meant to reflect the magnitude of the effect of Asparaginase on amino acide depletion which is more prominenet in the context of the asparagine compared to glutamine