Group contributions for estimating standard gibbs energies of formation of biochemical compounds in aqueous solution

A method is presented for the estimation of the standard Gibbs energies of formation of biochemical compounds (and hence the Gibbs energies and equilibrium constants of biochemical reactions) from the contributions of groups. The method employs a large set of groups and special corrections. The contributions were estimated via multiple linear regression, using screened and weighted literature data. For most of the data employed, the error is less than 2 kcal/mol. The method provides a useful first approximation to Gibbs energies and equilibrium constants in biochemical systems.