a protein that forms in the liver of the human fetus. Excessive quantities in the amniotic fluid and maternal blood may indicate spina bifida in the fetus; low levels may point to Down's syndrome
Abbreviation: afp
alpha-fetoprotein in American English
(ˌælˌfə fitoʊˈproʊˌtin; ˌfitoʊˈproʊtiɪn)
noun
a protein in the blood of a normal fetus, occasionally reappearing in an adult, where its presence indicates the possibility of disease or, in a pregnant woman, of fetal malformations