BIOCHEMICAL SYSTEMS ANALYSIS .2. STEADY-STATE SOLUTIONS FOR AN N-POOL SYSTEM USING A POWER-LAW APPROXIMATION

The linearization of the dynamic equations governing biochemical systems is an inadequate approximation procedure, since the dynamic range of the variables is known to produce highly non-linear operation. A power-law approximation technique based on the non-linear nature of these reactions is presented in this paper. The range of validity is considerably greater than in the linear case, while the effort necessary to obtain steady-state solutions is about the same. The approximation procedure is applied to a general n-pool system; the nature and number of the steady-state solutions are derived. An example is also given to illustrate the different types of solutions and their physical interpretation. © 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.