A variational principle for computing nonequilibrium fluxes and   potentials in genome-scale biochemical networks
  We derive a convex optimization problem on a steady-state nonequilibrium network of biochemical reactions, with the property that energy conservation and the second law of thermodynamics both hold at the problem solution. This suggests a new variational principle for biochemical networks that can be implemented in a computationally tractable manner. We derive the Lagrange dual of the optimization problem and use strong duality to demonstrate that a biochemical analogue of Tellegen's theorem holds at optimality. Each optimal flux is dependent on a free parameter that we relate to an elementary kinetic parameter when mass action kinetics is assumed. 
Ronan M. T. Fleming, Christopher M. Maes, Michael A. Saunders, Yinyu   Ye and Bernhard {\O}. Palsson
q-bio.MN q-bio.QM