second messenger

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noun Biochemistry.

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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Compare first messenger.

Origin of second messenger

First recorded in 1960–65

Words nearby second messenger

second lieutenant, secondly, second man, second mate, secondment, second messenger, second molar, second mortgage, second name, second nature, secondo

How to use second messenger in a sentence

Gunshots rang out in Paris this morning on a second day of deadly violence that has stunned the French capital.
France Mourns—and Hunts|Nico Hines, Christopher Dickey|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And as he adjusted to this change in circumstances, he screamed at himself a second time: Wait!
Powerful Congressman Writes About ‘Fleshy Breasts’|Asawin Suebsaeng|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A second document was titled: “Gambia Reborn: A Charter for Transition from Dictatorship to Democracy and Development.”
The Shadowy U.S. Veteran Who Tried to Overthrow a Country|Jacob Siegel|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
If 29 vote for someone else, the race for speaker goes to a second ballot for the first time in almost 100 years.
Kamikaze Congress Prepares to Strike Boehner|Ben Jacobs|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST

At least 29 fellow Republicans must vote against Boehner for a second ballot to be reached, and that seems very unlikely.
The YOLO Caucus' New Cry for Attention|Ben Jacobs|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In treble, second and fourth, the first change is a dodge behind; and the second time the treble leads, there's a double Bob.
Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing|Richard Duckworth and Fabian Stedman
On his head was the second-hand hat of some parvenu's coachman, gold lace, cockade and all.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
The beauty, the mystery,—this fierce sunshine or something—stir——' She hesitated for a fraction of a second.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
Roman Pane who accompanied Columbus on his second voyage alludes to another method of using the herb.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
He set down as the second the golden rule, “Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye even so to them.”
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne

Cultural definitions for second messenger

second messenger

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.)