methylate

American  

[meth-uh-leyt] / ˈmɛθ əˌleɪt /

noun

1. Also called methoxide.  any derivative of methyl alcohol, as sodium methylate, CH 3 ONa.

2. any compound containing the methyl group.

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verb (used with object)

methylated, methylating

1. (in a compound) to replace (one or more hydrogen atoms) with the methyl group.

2. to mix with methyl alcohol, as in the denaturation of ethyl alcohol.

methylate British  

/ ˈmɛθɪˌleɪt /

verb

1. (tr) to mix with methanol

2. to undergo or cause to undergo a chemical reaction in which a methyl group is introduced into a molecule

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noun

1. another name for methoxide

methylate Scientific  

/ mĕth′ə-lāt′ /

1. An organic compound having the general formula CH ₃ OR, in which R is a metal. Methylates are formed by replacing the hydrogen of the hydroxyl group (OH) of methyl alcohol with a metal.

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1. To combine with the methyl radical.

Other Word Forms

• methylation
  noun
• methylator
  noun
• unmethylated
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of methylate

First recorded in 1825–35; methyl- + -ate ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

methylate methylated

RBPs methylate miRNA to inhibit its function and thus stop mRNA degradation.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

The latter is then made to methylate a product, aniline, derived indirectly from coal-tar.

From Coal and What We Get from It by Raphael Meldola

They form unstable addition products with sodium ethylate or methylate.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 7 "Equation" to "Ethics" by Various

Well-dried hydroxylamine hydrochloride is dissolved in methyl alcohol and mixed with sodium methylate; a solution of methyldichloramine in absolute ether is then added and an ethereal solution of diazomethane distils over.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 4 "Diameter" to "Dinarchus" by Various

The preliminary experiments showed that condensation with sodium methylate takes a long time and gives a product which it is difficult to handle in large quantities.

From Organic Syntheses by James Bryant Conant

"The capture methylation method we used enriches methylated DNA as well as mammalian DNA, which improved the amount of hyena DNA over bacterial DNA and the quality of the sequencing data," explains Weyrich.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 28, 2024

In cancer cells, the DNA in the promoter region of silenced genes is methylated on cytosine DNA residues in CpG islands.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

The genes switched on or off by the methylated bases near them may help control that trait—for example, the life span methylation cluster may govern stem cell genes important early in development, the team proposes.

From Science Magazine ● Oct. 18, 2021

In addition to prescription medications, she used methylated spirits, tea tree oil, and even put toothpaste on the spots.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2020

The spray was a 25 per cent DDT concentrate suspended in a solvent containing methylated naphthalenes.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson