MYC and cancer: More importantly, certain oncogenic transcription factors, such as c-MYC and RAS, can increase the cancer cell glutamine metabolic activity by upregulating glutamine transporters such as alanine-serine-cysteine transporter 2 (ASCT2) and enzymes participating in the conversion of glutamine-to-glutamate, such as glutaminase (GLS)-1 (46).