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methylation

American  
[meth-uh-ley-shuhn] / ˌmɛθ əˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

Chemistry.
  1. the process of replacing a hydrogen atom with a methyl group.


Etymology

Origin of methylation

First recorded in 1875–80; methylate + -ion

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

GRAIL’s Galleri test looks for methylation patterns in DNA that may indicate a cancer signal and predict where it originated.

From Slate Sep. 9, 2026

These tools estimate biological age by measuring DNA methylation, a pattern of chemical tags that influences how genes are switched on or off without changing the DNA sequence itself.

From Science Daily Jul. 14, 2026

To investigate, the research team analyzed DNA methylation patterns, a common form of epigenetic modification, in umbilical cord blood from 571 infants.

From Science Daily Jun. 2, 2026

Paramutation occurs when methylation present on one allele triggers methylation on another allele.

From Science Daily Jun. 1, 2026

From 1858 to 1861 methylated spirit was duty-free when it was required for manufacturing processes, and the methylation or ``denaturizing'' was carried out in accordance with a prescribed process.

From The Project Gutenberg Encyclopedia Volume 1 of 28 by Project Gutenberg

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