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Definition of "urokinase" [urokinase]

  • An enzyme in human urine that catalyzes the conversion of plasminogen to plasmin and is used in medicine to dissolve blood clots. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "urokinase" in a sentence
  • "In a mouse study, Dickek and his team transplanted bone marrow containing macrophages that overproduce a protein-digesting enzyme known as urokinase into aged, atherosclerotic mice."
  • "UW researchers learned that, inside some advanced plaques, macrophages that overproduce a protein-digesting enzyme known as urokinase into aged, atherosclerotic mice."
  • ""For instance, platelets might deliver an enzyme called urokinase to selectively disintegrate blood clots.""