🧼 A bleaching agent 🦠 A germ killer

hypochlorous acid

5.5

A chemical made by white blood cells to kill bacteria and other germs

noun
/ˌhaɪpoʊˈklɔːrəs ˈæsɪd/

Specialized

: ácido hipocloroso

During inflammation, hypochlorous acid is produced by neutrophils to destroy invading bacteria.

Examples

Topical formulations containing hypochlorous acid are used to reduce infection and promote wound healing.
Researchers found that low concentrations of hypochlorous acid help neutrophils kill pathogens effectively.
The body produces hypochlorous acid to fight infections.
In the immune response, hypochlorous acid helps to kill bacteria.
During inflammation, hypochlorous acid is produced by neutrophils to destroy invading bacteria.
Researchers found that low concentrations of hypochlorous acid help neutrophils kill pathogens effectively.
Topical formulations containing hypochlorous acid are used to reduce infection and promote wound healing.

Surface Forms

hypochlorous acid singular

hypochlorous acids plural

Morphology

hypochlorous + acid

This is a straightforward adjective+noun composition: 'hypochlorous' describes a chlorine-related chemical quality and 'acid' names the class of substance, so together they denote an acid with hypochlorous properties (HOCl). While the full biomedical specifics (e.g., production by neutrophils) are technical, the basic meaning as a chlorine-derived acid is directly derivable from the constituents and is cross-linguistically transparent.

Etymology

Hypochlorous acid is also the tiny 'bleach' that some white blood cells called neutrophils make to kill germs. That image explains why hypochlorous acid is made by neutrophils to destroy bacteria and other germs during an infection.