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cofactor

[ koh-fak-ter ]

noun

  1. Biochemistry. any of various organic or inorganic substances necessary to the function of an enzyme.
  2. Mathematics.
    1. a prefactor or postfactor.
    2. the product of the minor of a given element of a matrix times −1 raised to the power of the sum of the indices of the row and column crossed out in forming the minor.


cofactor

/ ˈkəʊˌfæktə /

noun

  1. maths a number associated with an element in a square matrix, equal to the determinant of the matrix formed by removing the row and column in which the element appears from the given determinant See minor
  2. biochem a nonprotein substance that forms a complex with certain enzymes and is essential for their activity. It may be a metal ion or a coenzyme
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

cofactor

/ făk′tər /

  1. A substance, such as a metallic ion or a coenzyme, that must be associated with an enzyme for the enzyme to function. Cofactors work by changing the shape of an enzyme or by actually participating in the enzymatic reaction.
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Word History and Origins

Origin of cofactor1

First recorded in 1935–40; co- + factor
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Compare Meanings

How does cofactor compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

Researchers at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, have identified how such a cofactor, the so-called hydrogen cluster, is assembled.

Or it could be a cofactor, but on its own it wouldn’t be causal.

You may also want to consider selenium, a trace mineral that’s a cofactor in a free radical-quenching enzyme called glutathione peroxidase.

Usually, it becomes linked to the molecule coenzyme A to form methylmalonyl-CoA, and is converted to succinyl-CoA in a reaction that involves vitamin B12 as a cofactor.

From Nature

FNR uses the electrons it receives from ferredoxin to chemically reduce a small molecule known as NADP+ — a cofactor that acts as an electron shuttle.

From Nature

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