medical Definition of autophosphorylation
: phosphorylation of an organic compound (such as an enzyme) by its own residues
- Accordingly, if the autophosphorylation of receptor tyrosine kinases is suppressed pharmacologically, the assembly of the downstream signaling complexes may be halted, providing a chance to slow the progression of certain cancers.
- —John D. Scott and Tony Pawson, Science, 27 Nov. 2009
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autophosphorylate
play \ˌȯ-tō-ˌfäs-ˈfȯr-ə-ˌlāt\ transitive verb autophosphorylated; autophosphorylating-
- The intracellular β-subunit regions, like that of the EGF [epidermal growth factor] receptor, possess tyrosine kinase activity and a tyrosine residue that is autophosphorylated in response to insulin binding.
- —Keith Wilson, in Principles and Techniques of Practical Biochemistry, 5th edition, 2000
