phosphorylation

noun phos·phor·y·la·tion \ ˌfäs-ˌfȯr-ə-ˈlā-shən \

|Updated on: 19 Jun 2018

Definition of phosphorylation

: the process of phosphorylating a chemical compound either by reaction with inorganic phosphate or by transfer of phosphate from another organic phosphate; especially : the enzymatic conversion of carbohydrates into their phosphoric esters in metabolic processes

Recent Examples of phosphorylation from the Web

The class of cancer drugs that block phosphorylation activity are called tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

— bradley j. fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Superstar cancer researcher Tony Hunter of Salk Institute wins award, makes new finding," 4 Apr. 2018
This process, called tyrosine phosphorylation, is a normal part of cell-to-cell communication.

— bradley j. fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Superstar cancer researcher Tony Hunter of Salk Institute wins award, makes new finding," 4 Apr. 2018
Hunter is famous for discovering a class of enzymes called tyrosine kinases that perform tyrosine phosphorylation.

— bradley j. fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Scripps, Salk scientists independently make key biological advance," 12 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'phosphorylation.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.