ACTH
Americanabbreviation
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Biochemistry. a polypeptide hormone, produced by the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland, that stimulates the cortex of adrenal glands.
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Pharmacology. this substance, extracted from the pituitary glands of hogs and other species, in the form of its white, water-soluble powder, used for the diagnosis of diseases that impair the adrenal glands.
noun
Etymology
Origin of ACTH
First recorded in 1940–45; a(dreno)c(ortico)t(ropic) h(ormone); adrenocorticotropic ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It’s great for pH, ACTH, LDL, whatever ails you.
From The New Yorker
When Dr. Selye injected rats with overdoses of ACTH, the animals quickly lost weight and developed abscesses of the lungs, kidneys, liver and spleen.
From Time Magazine Archive
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Cortisone, ACTH, prednisone and other hormones sometimes produce such undesirable side effects as peptic ulcers, edema, mental disturbances and high blood pressure.
From Time Magazine Archive
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With the same sort of "luck," he was also the first to isolate four other hormones, including ACTH.
From Time Magazine Archive
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Two got better quickly after injections of corti sone, the third after ACTH.
From Time Magazine Archive
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.