Definition of "downregulate" []

• To decrease the number of cell receptors by using downregulation (verb)

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• "In particular, the researchers wanted to see whether the density of the receptors changes, because when dopamine is plentiful, dopamine receptors 'downregulate' - that is, move from the nerve-cell membrane to the inside of the cell, where they cannot be activated."
• "They also downregulate enzymes that synthesize fat."
• "Narbonne and Roy found that C. elegans larvae that lack a certain signaling pathway (the LKB1/AMPK pathway to be precise), which is activated during dauer, quickly downregulate fat mobilization so that lipid reserves are rationed to last the entire duration of the arrest."