Crossword clues for cholinesterase
Wiktionary
n. (context enzyme English) An enzyme, in muscles, nerves etc, that catalyzes the hydrolysis of acetylcholine or other choline ester
WordNet
n. an enzyme that hydrolyses acetylcholine (into choline and acetic acid)
Wikipedia
In biochemistry, a cholinesterase or choline esterase is an esterase that lyses choline-based esters, several of which serve as neurotransmitters. Thus, it is either of two enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of these cholinergic neurotransmitters, such as breaking acetylcholine into choline and acetic acid. These reactions are necessary to allow a cholinergic neuron to return to its resting state after activation. For example, in muscle contraction, acetylcholine at a neuromuscular junction triggers a contraction; but for the muscle to relax afterward, rather than remaining locked in a tense state, the acetylcholine must be broken down by a choline esterase. The main type for that purpose is acetylcholinesterase (also called choline esterase I or erythrocyte cholinesterase); it is found mainly in chemical synapses and red blood cell membranes. The other type is butyrylcholinesterase (also called choline esterase II or plasma cholinesterase); it is found mainly in the blood plasma.
Usage examples of "cholinesterase".
The three brains are said to be distinguished neuroanatomically and functionally, and contain strikingly different distributions of the neurochemicals dopamine and cholinesterase.
A strand of DNA contains many thousands of genes, each gene doing its own particular job such as, for instance, controlling the production of cholinesterase, a chemical which mediates electrical action in the nervous system.
One part of it would be a drug cocktail, a mixture of protein-synthesis enhancers, including even amphetamines and chemical relatives of strychnine, and then transmitters like serotonin, glutamate receptor sensitizers, cholinesterase, cyclic AMP, and so on.
All nerve agents work the same way: They are cholinesterase inhibitors that mess up the signals your nervous system uses to make your body function.