zymogen

American

[zahy-muh-juhn, -jen] / ˈzaɪ mə dʒən, -ˌdʒɛn /

noun

Biochemistry.

any of various enzyme precursor molecules that may change into an enzyme as a result of catalytic change.

zymogen British

/ ˈzaɪməʊˌdʒɛn /

noun

biochem any of a group of compounds that are inactive precursors of enzymes and are activated by a kinase

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of zymogen

< German (1875); zymo-, -gen

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.

At Jessup, Woods had begun reading Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Encyclopedia, a four-pound tome that starts with an entry on the German city of Aachen and ends with zymogen, a protein precursor to enzymes.

From The New Yorker

When in this stage, the compound is known as "proenzyme," or "zymogen."

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023