Method of rate calculation

Abstract

A method of rate calculation in which, in connection with a reaction in which the substrate of an enzyme undergoes the action of the enzyme to be converted to a reaction product, a signal correlated to the concentration of the reaction product is measured at different points of time, those measured values obtained which exceed the upper limit preset in accordance with the detection limit of a detector to be used are excluded while selecting those measured values obtained at different points of time at least equal in number to the independent parameters of the approximating function and which are not greater than said upper limit and the measured values thus selected are weighted by a finite value to effect approximation by said function, provided that said finite value for weighting at least a portion of the measured values are changed continuously in accordance with the magnitudes of said specific measured values. This method is capable of calculating the rate of enzyme activity to accomplish precise quantification of a substance without impairing the continuity of a calibration curve even if measurements are conducted at discontinuous points of time over a measurement range where the rate will change under the influence of the concentrations of the substrate and the reaction product in the reaction mixture.