MetaPath Online

MetaPath Online analyzes and expands metabolic networks using a network expansion algorithm to characterize synthesizing capacities and hierarchical relationships for studies in metabolic, evolutionary, and systems biology.

Key Features:

• Network Expansion Algorithm: Begins from user-defined seed metabolites and leverages known data on metabolic reactions and pathways to systematically expand network scope.
• Scope Analysis: Defines and computes "scopes" as sets of metabolites that a network can synthesize when provided with specific seed metabolites.
• Hierarchical Mapping: Constructs directed acyclic graphs to analyze subset and hierarchical relationships among scopes, influenced by the chemical composition of metabolites.
• Evolutionary Insights: Examines evolutionary dynamics of network functions, including glucose metabolism expansion, to relate structural differences among species to functional properties.
• Robustness Analysis: Measures synthesizing capacities under varied external resource conditions to assess robustness of metabolic networks against structural changes.
• Comparative Functional Analysis: Performs comparative analyses between related species to identify cases where similar network structures yield different biological functions.

Scientific Applications:

• Structural Analysis: Investigating how metabolic networks expand and how their structure changes over evolutionary time.
• Functional Analysis: Quantifying synthesizing capacities and robustness of metabolic networks.
• Comparative Studies: Comparing metabolic functions across organisms to uncover evolutionary patterns and differences in network design.
• Pathway Visualization: Mapping synthesis pathways to elucidate complex biochemical processes and synthesis capabilities.

Methodology:

Applies a network expansion algorithm starting from user-defined seed metabolites, leverages known data on metabolic reactions and pathways to compute scopes (sets of synthesizable metabolites), constructs directed acyclic graphs to map hierarchical relationships among scopes, measures synthesizing capacities under external resource conditions for robustness analysis, and conducts comparative analyses across species including analysis of glucose metabolism expansion.