Studies in biochemical adaptation. The ‘mass action’ theory of enzyme adaptation

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Abstract
A model of enzyme adaptation by "mass action" is proposed mainly on the assumption that enzymes and other proteins are in equilibrium with one another through a common pool of building material. Qualitative and quantitative predictions were made for the rate of adaptation, the relationship between the concn. of the substrate and the extent of adaptation, and competition between enzyme-forming systems. The conformity of the predictions with exptl. results was shown in expts. described in 2 papers (see 2 following abstracts). The extended''"mass action" is at this stage no more than a working hypothesis, developed from a limited set of assumptions, to account for the main facts of enzyme adaptation in both animals and microorganisms. It is not claimed that the conformity of exptl. results with the theoretical predictions is a "proof" of the theory, to the exclusion of other possible explanations.
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