Abstract

SANCHEZ HENAO, Claudia Patricia; RAMIREZ-MALULE, Howard  and  LOPEZ-AGUDELO, Víctor A.. Basic concepts of metabolic flux analysis. Ing. compet. [online]. 2021, vol.23, n.1, e9509.  Epub Jan 03, 2021. ISSN 0123-3033.  https://doi.org/10.25100/iyc.v23i1.9509.

Metabolism represents the biological level that is most related to the phenotypes of the cell and, alterations or reprogramming of this can (i) affect the production of primary or secondary metabolites in microorganisms of biotechnological interest, (ii) favor or not the inhibition of growth in pathogenic organisms and (iii) developing metabolic disorders such as obesity or diabetes, among others. The study of metabolism, redesign, and redirection of metabolic fluxes has become an important area of research (also known as Metabolic Engineering), as it has allowed the development and design of improved biological processes, the identification of therapeutic targets, the design of therapeutic strategies to cure metabolic disorders and the identification of biomarkers in cancer, among others. Currently, the development of computational methodologies is allowing to study the cell metabolism under different environmental conditions and directing experiments with the model's predictions. The purpose of this review is to highlight the importance of metabolic flux analysis as a general methodology to study metabolic reprogramming in different organisms of biotechnological, medical, and therapeutic interest. This work condenses the theoretical bases and key concepts to understand the analysis of metabolic fluxes, which will be a fundamental input for those who are entering to the world of systems biology or related areas.

Keywords : Flux balance analysis; Metabolic control analysis; Metabolic flux analysis; Metabolic modeling.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in English     · English ( pdf )