growth factor

American

noun

any of various proteins that promote the growth, organization, and maintenance of cells and tissues.

growth factor British

noun

any of several substances present in serum that induce growth of cells. Excessive amounts of growth factor may be associated with the production of cancer cells

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

growth factor

The research focuses on hepatocyte growth factor, or HGF, a protein that helps initiate the repair of skeletal muscle.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 24, 2026

Over at GlaxoSmithKline, a partnership with Korea’s ABL Bio will use the receptor for the insulinlike growth factor as a portal for neurology drugs.

From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026

"Because these treatments would target receptors at the surface of pain-sensing neurons, this specificity might avoid the side effects seen with other monoclonal antibodies that sequester all nerve growth factor in the body."

From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2024

To determine this, they observed that nerve growth factor has a stretch of amino acids that is known to allow other proteins to bind to NPR1.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2024

It is so often associated with rebellion because rebellion is or has been, historically, necessary to the exercise of this growth factor.

From The Colonists by Jones, Raymond F.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023