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Hill coefficient
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In biochemistry, the binding of a ligand to a macromolecule is often enhanced if there are already other ligands present on the same macromolecule (this is known as Cooperative binding). The Hill coefficient, named for Archibald Vivian Hill, provides a way to quantify this effect.
A coefficient of 1 indicates completely independent binding, regardless of how many additional ligands are already bound. Numbers greater than one indicate positive cooperativity, while numbers less than one indicate negative cooperativity. The Hill coefficient was originally devised to explain the cooperative binding of oxygen to Hemoglobin (a system which has a Hill coefficient of 2.8).
See also: Hill equation
Last updated: 10-22-2005 08:55:25
10-26-2009 08:16:03
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The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details