effector

American  

[ih-fek-ter] / ɪˈfɛk tər /

noun

1. Also effecter a person or thing that effects.

2. Physiology. an organ or cell that carries out a response to a nerve impulse.

3. Biochemistry. a substance, as a hormone, that increases or decreases the activity of an enzyme.

4. end effector.

   The device has three arms with effectors that can grip and pick up objects.

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effector British  

/ ɪˈfɛktə /

noun

1. physiol a nerve ending that terminates in a muscle or gland and provides neural stimulation causing contraction or secretion

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Etymology

Origin of effector

1595–1605; < Latin, equivalent to effec-, variant stem of efficere ( see effect) + -tor -tor

Example Sentences

The researchers also discovered that genes responsible for these bacterial effector proteins are more common in the gut microbiomes of people with Crohn's disease.

From Science Daily • Mar. 27, 2026

"The presence/absence of large genomic regions across these lineages showed that horizontal transfers of effector genes, namely genes that are important in establishing successful infection, contributed to establishing host specificity."

From Science Daily • Dec. 5, 2024

They add that knowledge of horizontal transfer mechanisms and putative donor taxa might help to design future intercropping strategies that minimize the risk of transfer of effector genes between closely related Fusarium taxa.

From Science Daily • Dec. 5, 2024

Only when the parental cell's T-cell receptor managed a Goldilocks middle-ground binding strength were cancer-killing effector cells created.

From Science Daily • May 30, 2024

Since those organs are therefore the mechanisms in which the ultimate effect of the nervous reaction takes place, they are often termed from this point of view effector organs.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 4 "Bradford, William" to "Brequigny, Louis" by Various