cadaverine

[kuh-dav-uh-reen]

noun

Biochemistry.

1. a colorless, viscous, toxic ptomaine, C 5 H 14 N 2 , having an offensive odor, formed by the action of bacilli on meat, fish, and other protein: used in polymerization and biological research.

cadaverine

/ kəˈdævəˌriːn /

noun

1. a toxic diamine with an unpleasant smell, produced by protein hydrolysis during putrefaction of animal tissue. Formula: NH 2 (CH 2 ) 5 NH 2

Word History and Origins

Origin of cadaverine¹

First recorded in 1885–90; cadaver + -ine ²

Example Sentences

In contrast, the more a baby was formula fed, the higher their levels of a metabolite called cadaverine, a known contaminant formed via fermentation.

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Not everyone wants to sniff the compounds known as putrescine and cadaverine — this particular sample isn’t as awful as you might think — but many eagerly take part in the final display.

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An overwhelming “cadaverine” stench hung in the air on Aimee Beveridge’s wooded, 10-acre property on Orcas Island, a destination better known for salty sea scents or its fragrant firs.

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Lysine and ornithine have very similar molecular structures, and the authors found that Spe1, the enzyme that decarboxylates ornithine, can also decarboxylate lysine to generate cadaverine.

Read more on Nature

It turns out that death, in odor form, is indeed straightforward: a couple of relatively coöperative naturally occurring chemicals, putrescine and cadaverine, are responsible for the characteristic smell of a decaying corpse.

Read more on The New Yorker