transferrin

American

[trans-fer-in] / trænsˈfɛr ɪn /

noun

Biochemistry.

a plasma glycoprotein that transports dietary iron to the liver, spleen, and bone marrow.

transferrin British

/ trænsˈfɜːrɪn /

noun

Also called: beta globulin. siderophilin. biochem any of a group of blood glycoproteins that transport iron

"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

Etymology

Origin of transferrin

1947; trans- + Latin ferr ( um ) iron + -in ²

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

transferrin

Preclinical projects are testing transferrin receptor vehicles for delivering amyloid antibodies, and a variety of treatments for Parkinson’s disease.

From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026

Roche’s anti-amyloid antibody trontinemab has a fragment that mimics the natural iron-shuttling molecule known as transferrin.

From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026

The team's screening technique identified an AAV called BI-hTFR1 that binds human transferrin receptor, enters human brain cells, and bypasses a human cell model of the blood-brain barrier.

From Science Daily ● May 16, 2024

To test the AAVs in animals, the researchers used mice in which the mouse gene that encodes the transferrin receptor was replaced with its human equivalent.

From Science Daily ● May 16, 2024

When EPO stimulates the production of erythrocytes, iron is released from storage, bound to transferrin, and carried to the red marrow where it attaches to erythrocyte precursors.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

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