METABOLIC CHANNELING VERSUS FREE DIFFUSION - TRANSITION-TIME ANALYSIS

Metabolic channeling is the term used to describe the restricted flow of substrates and products in multienzyme systems. It has been argued for some time that free diffusion is sufficiently rapid to obviate the need for channeling and, furthermore, that it is also fast enough to prevent competing side reactions from interfering with the metabolic f low. In this article we argue that a thorough consideration of the tem poral behavior of metabolite pools suggests that channeling is importa nt in many cases.