COX-2

 Dictionary entry overview: What does Cox-2 mean? 

• COX-2 (noun)
  The noun COX-2 has 1 sense:

1. an enzyme that makes prostaglandins that cause inflammation and pain and fever

  Familiarity information: COX-2 used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• COX-2 (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An enzyme that makes prostaglandins that cause inflammation and pain and fever

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Synonyms:

Cox-2; cyclooxygenase-2

Context example:

the beneficial effects of NSAIDs result from their ability to block Cox-2

Hypernyms ("Cox-2" is a kind of...):

Cox; cyclooxygenase (either of two related enzymes that control the production of prostaglandins and are blocked by aspirin)

 Context examples 

Recent NSAIDS acting selectively as Cox-2 inhibitors like Vioxx are widely used for the treatment of arthritis and other inflammatory conditions, inhibiting the production of downstream thromboxanes and prostaglandins.

(Eicosanoid Metabolism Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

NSAIDS selective for Cox-2 have been developed to avoid the development of ulcers by some non-selective NSAIDs, including aspirin.

(Acetaminophen Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

Cox-2 is an inducible enzyme whose expression is induced by inflammation.

(Acetaminophen Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

PGH2 synthase actually consists of two enzyme components, a cyclooxygenase and a peroxidase, and there are more than one type of cyclooxygenase, including Cox-1 and Cox-2.

(Eicosanoid Metabolism Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

Until very recently, only two Cox enzymes, Cox-1 and Cox-2, were known to be targets of NSAIDS.

(Acetaminophen Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

While these two isoforms were sufficient to account for most NSAIDs pharmacology, the actions of acetaminophen remained hard to explain on the basis of inhibiting Cox-1 and Cox-2 alone, such as its efficacy at reducing pain and fever but lack of anti-inflammatory effects.

(Acetaminophen Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)