Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Any of a group of potent hormonelike substances that are produced in various mammalian tissues, are derived from arachidonic acid, and mediate a wide range of physiological functions, such as control of blood pressure, contraction of smooth muscle, and modulation of inflammation.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun biochemistry Any of a group of naturally occurring lipids derived from the C20 acid prostanoic acid; they have a number of physiological functions and may be considered to be hormones.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a potent substance that acts like a hormone and is found in many bodily tissues (and especially in semen); produced in response to trauma and may affect blood pressure and metabolism and smooth muscle activity

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[prosta(te) gland (from the mistaken belief that the first prostaglandin discovered was secreted by the prostate) + –in.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From German Prostaglandin, corresponding to prosta(te) + gland + -in (because it was originally believed to be secreted from the prostate).

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Examples

  • Also, semen has a substance in it called prostaglandin, which is the same thing your body makes to soften your cervix.

    The Simple Guide to Having a Baby Janet Whalley 2005

  • Also, semen has a substance in it called prostaglandin, which is the same thing your body makes to soften your cervix.

    The Simple Guide to Having a Baby Janet Whalley 2005

  • Also, semen has a substance in it called prostaglandin, which is the same thing your body makes to soften your cervix.

    The Simple Guide to Having a Baby Janet Whalley 2005

  • Sune Bergström is responsible for a crucial breakthrough in prostaglandin research.

    Physiology or Medicine 1982 - Press Release 1982

  • The great breakthrough in prostaglandin research came in the late 1950s when Sune Bergström purified the first prostaglandins and determined their structure.

    The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1982 - Presentation Speech 1982

  • One of them is called prostaglandin, and that basically allows your arteries, which, you know, remeasure for that blood pressure, to not be as flexible.

    CNN Transcript Aug 16, 2005 2005

  • In addition, endometrial lesions emit high levels of a hormonelike substance known as prostaglandin, which can cause dramatic contractions within the uterus or fallopian tubes.

    Getting Pregnant Niels H. Lauersen 2000

  • To help cleanse your system of this now needless tissue, your body begins to produce a substance called prostaglandin, which, in turn, stimulates powerful uterine contractions.

    Getting Pregnant Niels H. Lauersen 2000

  • Older glaucoma drugs like latanoprost and travoprost -- called prostaglandin analogs because they bind to prostaglandins or lipids -- also stimulated lash growth but not as much.

    AlterNet.org Main RSS Feed AlterNet Martha Rosenberg 2010

  • The drug is a synthetic prostaglandin, which is a hormone-like messenger found in both sexes that acts on stomachs, kidneys, blood vessels and the uterus.

    The Globe and Mail - Home RSS feed Carolyn Abraham 2010

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