General concept
Flux patterns are the sets of reactions that carry flux in a flux vector. Elementary flux patterns are the flux patterns that cannot result from the combination of other flux patterns.
Items to consider when implementing
Software packages with this method
Applications of interest
Wessely, et al. (2011) used this method to show that pathways with high protein cost tend to be regulated throughout the pathway, while less costly pathways tend to be regulated at the start and end of the pathway.
Relevant references
Kaleta C, de Figueiredo LF, Schuster S. Can the whole be less than the sum of its parts? Pathway analysis in genome-scale metabolic networks using elementary flux patterns. Genome Res. 2009 Oct;19(10):1872-83.
Wessely F, Bartl M, Guthke R, Li P, Schuster S, Kaleta C. Optimal regulatory strategies for metabolic pathways in Escherichia coli depending on protein costs. Mol Syst Biol. 2011 Jul 19;7:515. doi: 10.1038/msb.2011.46.