proenkephalin

P3R1O1E1N1K5E1P3H4A1L1I1N1

noun

A precursor of leuenkephalin and metenkephalin.

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Meanings

nounproenkephalin (countable and uncountable, plural proenkephalins)

plural proenkephalins

  1. countableuncountablebiochemistryA precursor of leuenkephalin and metenkephalin.

    Finally, the gene for the opioid-associated precursor, proenkephalin (PRO), likewise displays enhanced expression (4.7-fold difference).

    2007 December 11, Craig Howard Kinsley, Massimo Bardi, Kate Karelina, Brandi Rima, Lillian Christon, Julia Friedenberg, Garrett Griffin, “Motherhood Induces and Maintains Behavioral and Neural Plasticity across the Lifespan in the Rat”, in Archives of Sexual Behavior, volume 37, number 1, →DOI

Origin

From pro- + enkephalin.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

proenkephalin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/proenkephalin

MLA

“proenkephalin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/proenkephalin. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “proenkephalin,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/proenkephalin.

Source: proenkephalin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.