downstream

adverb or adjective

down·​stream ˈdau̇n-ˈstrēm 

1

: in the direction of or nearer to the mouth of a stream

floating downstream

located two miles downstream

2

: in or toward the latter stages of a usually industrial process or the stages (such as marketing) after manufacture

improving profits downstream

downstream products

3

biochemistry : toward the end of a series of cellular processes : following a linked molecular event occurring in a sequence

But by looking downstream of the tumor suppressors [genes] at the proteins they influence, drug developers hope to find good targets.

—Marcia Barinaga

Examples of downstream in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Much of what was the iconic village of Chimney Rock is now wreckage situated downstream in Lake Lure. —Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Oct. 2024

The female occupant was rescued, but McCrary and his dog were swept downstream. —Saleen Martin, USA TODAY, 8 Oct. 2024

Eventually, the wedding party noticed the roof of another house floating downstream toward the Worth home. —Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 4 Oct. 2024

While experts say the Illinois River has not been suffering as greatly from drought, any issues in the Lower Mississippi can still cause a barge bottleneck downstream and have ripple effects upstream. —Adriana Pérez, Chicago Tribune, 22 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

downstream

adverb or adjective

down·​stream ˈdau̇n-ˈstrēm 

: in the direction a stream is flowing

Medical Definition

downstream

adverb or adjective

down·​stream ˌdau̇n-ˈstrēm 

1

: in the same direction along a molecule of DNA or RNA as that in which transcription and translation take place and toward the end having a hydroxyl group attached to the position labeled 3′ in the terminal nucleotide

a nucleotide sequence located downstream from the regulatory gene

effects on the expression of downstream genes

compare upstream sense 1

2

: toward the end of a series of cellular processes : following a linked molecular event occurring in a sequence

But by looking downstream of the tumor suppressors [genes] at the proteins they influence, drug developers hope to find good targets.

—Marcia Barinaga, Science

The tyrosine kinase activity of phosphorylated EGFR [epidermal growth factor receptor] in cancer cells results in the phosphorylation of downstream proteins that incite cell proliferation, invasion, metastasis, and inhibition of apoptosis.

—Jonathan E. Dowell and John D. Minna, The New England Journal of Medicine