second messenger

American  

noun

Biochemistry.

1. any of various intracellular chemical substances, as cyclic AMP, that transmit and amplify the messages delivered by a first messenger to specific receptors on the cell surface.

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second messenger Cultural  

1. A molecule that relays messages in a cell from a receptor on a cell membrane to the final destination where an action within the cell is to take place. (See signal transduction pathway.)

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Etymology

Origin of second messenger

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

second messenger

The hormone is called a first messenger and the cellular component is called a second messenger.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

The hormone that initiates the signaling pathway is called a first messenger, which activates a second messenger in the cytoplasm, as illustrated in Figure 28.6.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

Serotonin receptors are located on the cell membranes of neurons and activate second messenger cascades that regulate gene expression.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

I have sent a messenger and later I have even sent a second messenger, urging the bandits to send a competent agent to expedite our negotiations for the liberation of Mrs. Pawley and Mr. Corkran.

From Time Magazine Archive

A second messenger came during harvest time from the camp, now on the borders of Sussex.

From Alfgar the Dane or the Second Chronicle of Aescendune by A. D. (Augustine David) Crake