A new computational tool could give scientists a better understanding of the functional units critical to the performance of the biochemical pathways that govern biological processes. Developed by researchers from North Carolina State University (NCSU), the algorithm can identify which metabolites, biochemical reactions, and enzymes are related to each other, group them into functional modules, and identify whether an individual component plays a role in multiple modules. The algorithm also characterizes how the relationships between different modules and individual components may change over time and under different internal and external conditions. The input for the algorithm comes from using dynamic models to observe changes in concentrations of metabolites, biochemical reactions, and enzymes under various conditions. To read further, please visit http://news.ncsu.edu/releases/wms-williams-pathways2014/ .