agonism
AG-uh-niz-um
Definition
The act of a substance, such as a drug or hormone, binding to a receptor in the body to produce a specific biological response.
Etymology
Derived from the Greek 'agōnismos', meaning a struggle or contest, which itself comes from 'agōn' (a contest or assembly). In biology, it describes the way a molecule 'competes' or acts upon a receptor to initiate an action.
In the news
The article uses the term to describe how GLP-1 receptor agonists interact with brain circuits, noting that 'GLP-1 receptor agonism' can rapidly engage systems that influence both hunger and metabolism.
Scientists assumed semaglutide’s long-term effects would depend on silencing the brain’s hunger neurons. But a Yale-led study published in PNAS in August 2026 found that prolonged treatment recruited these neurons in female mice—and disrupting them w
Read the full article ↗ScienceBlog.com