cell adhesion molecule

noun

Medical Definition of cell adhesion molecule

: any of various molecules (such as cadherins, integrins, and selectins) on the surface of a cell that bring about adhesion by binding to molecules on the surface of other cells or on extracellular material Certain of the [extracellular] matrix molecules bind well to specific molecules (cell adhesion molecules) on the growth cones and thus provide anchors for growing axons.— John W. McDonald et al., Scientific American, September 1999 —abbreviation CAM

— called also adhesion molecule

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