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Definition

adjective

Pertaining to or involving a change in the shape and activity of a protein, usually an enzyme, when it binds with a molecule on a region other than its active site.

Supplement

A protein may both have an active site that binds with the substrate and an allosteric site that binds with a different molecule (called an effector). For instance, a partially deoxygenated hemoglobin binds allosterically with 2,3-Bisphosphoglycerate that upregulates the release of the remaining oxygen molecules bound to the hemoglobin, thus, enhancing the ability of the RBC to release oxygen near tissues that need it most.

Word origin: from the Greek allos, "other," and stereos, "space,"
Related forms: allostery (noun), allosterically (adverb)
See also: enzyme, active site, substrate, effector.