tumor necrosis factor

tumor necrosis factor   n.  A protein produced by macrophages in the presence of an endotoxin and shown experimentally to be capable of attacking and destroying cancerous tumors.

Main Entry: tumor necrosis factor
Function: noun
: a protein that is produced chiefly by monocytes and macrophages in response especially to endotoxins, that mediatesinflammation, and that induces the destruction of some tumor cells and the activation of white blood cells —abbreviation TNF

tumor necrosis factor n.
A protein produced by macrophages in the presence of an endotoxin and shown experimentally to be capable of attacking and destroying cancerous tumor cells.

tumor necrosis factor   A protein that is produced by monocytes and macrophages and is able to attack and destroy tumor cells. It can also exacerbate certain chronic inflammatory diseases.