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metabolic
metabolic pathway
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metabolism

me·tab·o·lism [ mə tábbə lìzzəm ]


noun 
Definition:
 
1. life-sustaining chemical activity: the series of processes by which food is converted into the energy and products needed to sustain life

2. chemical activity involving particular substance: the biochemical activity of a particular substance in a living organism

[Late 19th century. < Greek metabolē "change" < metaballein "throw differently" < ballein "to throw"]
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