METABOLIC CONTROL ANALYSIS OF RELAXATION PROCESSES

Metabolic control analysis is extended to relaxation processes induced by a perturbation of the system parameters. The control matrices are defined as operators relating the initial changes of the reaction rates to the variations of the metabolite concentrations and fluxes. Explicit expressions of the time-dependent control matrices are derived as functions of stoichiometry and elasticity coefficients. The summation and connectivity relationships are generalized. The results may also be applied to metabolic networks with conservation relationships, and to systems where the perturbation parameters act unspecifically and non-linearly on the reaction rates. © 1991 Academic Press Limited.