Handbook Of Metabolic Pathway Engineering

Metabolism refers to the total of an organism’s chemical reactions. A metabolic pathway is a series steps found in biochemical reactions that help convert molecules or substrates, such as sugar, into different, more readily usable materials. These reactions occur inside of a cell, where enzymes, or protein molecules, break down or build up molecules. These enzymes are similar to traffic lights in that they can slow, speed up, and stop metabolic processes. Pathways are required for the maintenance of homeostasis within an organism and the flux of metabolites through a pathway is regulated depending on the needs of the cell and the availability of the substrate. The end product of a pathway may be used immediately, initiate another metabolic pathway or be stored for later use. This book gives a systematic and comprehensive overview of the burgeoning field of metabolic pathway engineering and focuses on the future areas of metabolic engineering and the impact of new technologies.