DIAZEPAM

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does diazepam mean? 

• DIAZEPAM (noun)
  The noun DIAZEPAM has 1 sense:

1. a tranquilizer (trade name Valium) used to relieve anxiety and relax muscles; acts by enhancing the inhibitory actions of the neurotransmitter GABA; can also be used as an anticonvulsant drug in cases of nerve agent poisoning

  Familiarity information: DIAZEPAM used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• DIAZEPAM (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A tranquilizer (trade name Valium) used to relieve anxiety and relax muscles; acts by enhancing the inhibitory actions of the neurotransmitter GABA; can also be used as an anticonvulsant drug in cases of nerve agent poisoning

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

diazepam; Valium

Hypernyms ("diazepam" is a kind of...):

benzodiazepine (any of several similar lipophilic amines used as tranquilizers or sedatives or hypnotics or muscle relaxants; chronic use can lead to dependency)

 Context examples 

The determination of the amount of diazepam present in a sample.

(Diazepam Measurement, NCI Thesaurus)

Diazepam potentiates the inhibitory activities of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) by binding to the GABA receptor, located in the limbic system and the hypothalamus.

(Diazepam, NCI Thesaurus)

Mice that lacked Shisa7 were much less likely than wild-type mice to fall asleep from high levels of diazepam.

(‘Sticky’ gene may help Valium calm nerves, National Institutes of Health)

Electrical recordings showed that Shisa7 hastened receptor responses to the transmitter GABA and nearly doubled the size of responses made in the presence of Valium (a.k.a. diazepam), suggesting the protein made the receptor more sensitive to benzodiazepines.

(‘Sticky’ gene may help Valium calm nerves, National Institutes of Health)