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colony stimulating factor

n.

A hormone produced in the cells lining the blood vessels that stimulates the bone marrow to synthesize white blood cells.

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Nearby words

  1. colonoscopy,
  2. colonsay,
  3. colonus,
  4. colony,
  5. colony collapse disorder,
  6. colony-stimulating factor,
  7. colopexostomy,
  8. colopexy,
  9. colophon,
  10. colophonian
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Science definitions for colony stimulating factor

colony stimulating factor

Any of various glycoproteins that act to promote the production and differentiation of specific blood cell types. Colony stimulating factors circulate in the blood, acting as hormones, and are also secreted locally. An example is erythropoietin, which is produced in the kidney and regulates the formation of red blood cells from progenitor cells in the bone marrow.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.