Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
phenazine

phenazine

1 9.9
A chemical some bacteria make that gives bright color and can act as a medicine against harmful bacteria
  • noun
  • /ˈfɛnəˌzin/
  • Specialized
: fenazina
  • molecules called phenazines
  • produce phenazines

Examples

  • Levendis: On Friday, the 4th of October, he found an interstate trucker dumping badly sealed canisters of phenazine in an isolated picnic area outside Phillipsburg, Kansas.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • They found that over time, the bacterial populations build up and the antibiotics—phenazine-1-carboxylic acid (PCA) or TOOLONG (Phl)—defeat the disease.

    Academic text (1995)

  • Researchers found that the phenazine pigment produced by certain bacteria brightens the colors of the surrounding environment.

  • The antibiotic properties of phenazine make it a useful compound in combating bacterial infections.

  • The vivid hue of the phenazine dye was often used in textile manufacturing during the 19th century.

Surface Forms

phenazine singular
phenazines plural

Etymology

Phenazine combines phen- (from 'phenyl', a carbon 'ring' that often makes bright colors) and -azine (a chemist's ending meaning a 'nitrogen' ring). So, a phenazine is a nitrogen-containing ring compound, often made by bacteria and used as a pigment and sometimes as an antibiotic.