hapten

[hap-ten]

hap·ten

[hap-ten]
noun Immunology.
a substance having a single antigenic determinant that can react with a previously existing antibody but cannot stimulate more antibody production unless combined with other molecules; a partial antigen.
Also, hap·tene [hap-teen] .


Origin:
1920–25; < German < Greek hápt(ein) to grasp + German -en -ene
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To hapten

00:10

00:09

00:08

00:07

00:06

00:05

00:04

00:03

00:02

00:01

Hapten is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
Collins
World English Dictionary
hapten or haptene (ˈhæptən, ˈhæptiːn)
 
n
immunol an incomplete antigen that can stimulate antibody production only when it is chemically combined with a particular protein
 
[C20: from German, from Greek haptein to fasten]
 
haptene or haptene
 
n
 
[C20: from German, from Greek haptein to fasten]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

hapten hap·ten (hāp'tən)
n.
A substance that is capable of reacting with a specific antibody but cannot induce the formation of antibodies unless bound to a carrier protein or other molecule. Also called incomplete antigen, partial antigen.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

hapten

small molecule that stimulates the production of antibody molecules only when conjugated to a larger molecule, called a carrier molecule.

Learn more about hapten with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Cite This Source
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature