Metabolic Cycles: Effect of a Simultaneous Input and Output of Two Substrates

Abstract

The metabolic cycle firstly considered here is composed of a unique initial substrate, six enzymes, and five empty boxes to accommodate the substrates derived from the transformation of the initial substrate. This cycle was considered as a pre-Closed Metabolic Cycle (CMC). Using this model, the influence of changing the kinetic constant values of any enzyme on the substrate concentration was explored. This model was transformed into an open metabolic cycle (OMC) by the input and output of two metabolites catalyzed by two external enzymes. In this case, the relative rates of input and output of metabolites were also examined; it can be concluded that the OMC cycles form delicate and fragile structures which can be theoretically disrupted, making them metabolically unfeasible.