🩺 To tie off 🔤 To join letters 🧬 To join molecules

to ligate

1 9.9

To join two molecules together with a chemical bond using an enzyme

verb
/ˈlaɪɡeɪt/

Specialized

: ligar

So you just use the phosphate and noh like to ligate two different adapters.

Examples

To study genetic modifications, researchers ligate pieces of DNA using specific enzymes.
You have little DNA fragments that have to be ligated together on this strand.
Double-stranded adaptor DNA fragments with a complementary overhang are ligated to the ends of the cut fragments.

Academic text (2010)
The applications were gel-purified (AXYGEN, USA) and ligated into the pMD-18T vector (Takara) for sequencing.

Academic text (2015)
In molecular biology, scientists often ligate DNA fragments to create a recombinant DNA molecule.
After preparing the samples, the technician will ligate the DNA segments to ensure they bond properly.

Synonyms

to conjugate

vsto ligate

Specialized

1 7.1

To join with another substance, often in a chemical reaction

is more specific and often done by an enzyme to form bonds

to cross-link

vsto ligate

Jargon

1 7.0

To join two nearby chains of atoms in a molecule by forming bonds between them

is broader, applying to molecule joining often via enzyme action not only chain links

to enlace

vsto ligate

Archaic

1 9.2

To join things by twisting or linking them together

is chemical and usually involves forming a bond, often with an enzyme

to dimerize

vsto ligate

Specialized

9.5

To join two molecules together to make a pair

focuses more on enzyme-driven bonding of fragments rather than just pairing

Antonyms

to dissociate

Specialized

1 7.4

To split a molecule into atoms or ions

Surface Forms

ligate infinitive

ligated past

ligated past participle

ligating present participle

ligates third person singular

Morphology

ligate = ligature (semi-transparent) = lig + ate

The binding sense is extended metaphorically to chemical joining; form is related but the domain-specific meaning may not be obvious to general learners.

Etymology

The word ligate comes from the Latin ligare, 'to bind' or 'to tie'. In chemistry and biology to ligate molecules or DNA is to 'tie' them together with a bond, so the root 'bind' explains the modern meaning.