Enzyme Kinetics

We live in the age of biology—the human and many other organisms’ genomes have been sequenced and we are starting to understand the function of the metabolic machinery responsible for life on our planet. Thousands of new genes have been discovered, many of these coding for enzymes of yet unknown function. Understanding the kinetic behavior of an enzyme provides clues to its possible physiological role. From a biotechnological point of view, knowledge of the catalytic properties of an enzyme is required for the design of immobilized enzyme-based industrial processes. Biotransformations are of key importance to the pharmaceutical and food industries, and knowledge of the catalytic properties of enzymes, essential. This book is about understanding the principles of enzyme kinetics and knowing how to use mathematical models to describe the catalytic function of an enzyme. Coverage of the material is by no means exhaustive. There exist many books on enzyme kinetics that offer thorough, in-depth treatises of the subject. This book stresses understanding and practicality, and is not meant to replace, but rather to complement, authoritative treatises on the subject such as Segel’s Enzyme Kinetics.