sodium pump

American  

noun

1. an energy-consuming mechanism in cell membranes that transports sodium ions across the membrane, in exchange for potassium ions or other substances.

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Etymology

Origin of sodium pump

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

First, a mutation of small effect would have altered the structure of the sodium pump to provide some resistance, but also some neurological problems.

From Scientific American • Oct. 2, 2019

Some flies had one mutation of three seen in the sodium pump gene of monarchs, and some had combinations.

From Scientific American • Oct. 2, 2019

They can tolerate this food source because of a peculiarity in a crucial protein in their bodies, a sodium pump, that the cardenolide toxins usually interfere with.

From Scientific American • Oct. 2, 2019

An important development was his theory that the diarrhea results from a disturbance of what doctors call "the sodium pump."

From Time Magazine Archive