disulfiram

American  

[dahy-suhl-feer-uhm] / ˌdaɪ sʌlˈfɪər əm /

noun

Pharmacology.

1. a cream-colored, water-insoluble solid, C 10 H 20 N 2 S 4 , used chiefly in the treatment of chronic alcoholism, producing highly unpleasant symptoms when alcohol is taken following its administration.

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disulfiram British  

/ ˌdaɪsʌlˈfɪərəm /

noun

1. a drug used in the treatment of alcoholism that acts by inducing nausea and other unpleasant effects following ingestion of alcohol

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Etymology

Origin of disulfiram

1950–55; disulfi(de) + (thiu)ram; thio-, urea, amyl

Example Sentences

Only three conventional drugs - disulfiram, naltrexone and acamprosate - are approved to treat alcohol use disorder and there’s been no new drug approvals in nearly 20 years.

From Washington Times

“You add disulfiram to a population of Borrelia growing in a test tube and it wipes out and essentially sterilises that population,” Lewis says.

From The Guardian

Around this time, manufacturers began using a chemical known as disulfiram to accelerate the vulcanization of rubber.

From New York Times

Our nationwide epidemiological study reveals that patients who continuously used disulfiram have a lower risk of death from cancer compared to those who stopped using the drug at their diagnosis.

From Nature

Starting in the 1970s, scientists found that disulfiram killed cancer cells and slowed tumor growth in animals.

From Science Magazine