bromodeoxyuridine

1 9.9

A man-made chemical scientists use to label new DNA when cells divide

noun
/ˌbroʊmoʊˌdiːˌoʊksɪˈjʊərɪˌdiːn/

Specialized

: bromodeoxirriburidina

Researchers often use bromodeoxyuridine to label dividing cells in DNA synthesis studies.

Examples

So they they give them bromodeoxyuridine, which labels the newly generated cells.
The team tracked cell proliferation by adding bromodeoxyuridine to the culture medium.
In experiments, bromodeoxyuridine is used to replace thymidine, allowing scientists to monitor DNA replication.

Surface Forms

bromodeoxyuridine singular

bromodeoxyuridines plural

Morphology

bromodeoxyuridine = deoxyuridine (opaque) = bromo + deoxy + uridine

The components are technical chemical combining forms and the precise meaning (a brominated deoxy form of uridine) is domain-specific and not inferable by an average B1 learner.

Etymology

Bromodeoxyuridine comes from three parts: bromo- for the element bromine, deoxy- meaning 'without oxygen', and uridine, which is the name of a natural genetic 'building block'. So, bromodeoxyuridine is a lab-made version of a DNA building block that scientists use to 'label' and track new DNA when cells divide.