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Hormone Carrier Protein

Meaning

A Hormone Carrier Protein is a class of plasma proteins, primarily synthesized within the liver, whose essential physiological function is to bind and transport hydrophobic steroid and thyroid hormones throughout the systemic bloodstream. These specific proteins, such as Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin (SHBG) and Corticosteroid-Binding Globulin (CBG), dynamically regulate the overall bioavailability of hormones by maintaining a large, circulating reservoir of bound hormone. Only the unbound, or free, fraction of the hormone is generally considered biologically active and capable of diffusing across cell membranes into target cells.