cytotoxicadj.
/ˌsʌɪtə(ʊ)ˈtɒksɪk/, U.S. /ˌsaɪdəˈtɑksɪk/ 1. Causing death or injury to cells.
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cytotoxic1902
1902 Lancet 11 Oct. 980/1 This is true especially in the case of cytotoxic sera.
1943 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 14 Aug. 203/1 The favourable effect of antireticular cytotoxic serum on the course of infectious diseases of the nervous system.
1961 New Scientist 19 Oct. 186/1 The so-called cytotoxic drugs used in the treatment of cancer.
1985 W. Frain-Bell Cutaneous Photobiol. i. 1 At the time when the earth was cooling, the cytotoxic u.v. C waveband was prevented from reaching the earth, thus allowing living cells to survive.
2007 R. W. Ruddon Cancer Biol. (ed. 4) ix. 489/2 Damage to cells' genomic apparatus comes from both external and intrinsic sources. The former includes exposure to irradiation, cytotoxic chemicals, sunlight,..etc.
2. Immunology. Designating a class of T lymphocytes that can kill target cells bearing viral, tumour, or other foreign antigens; of or relating to such cells.
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1971 K. T. Brunner & J. C. Cerottini in B. Amos Progress in Immunol. 385 (title) Cytotoxic lymphocytes as effector cells of cell-mediated immunity.
1986 N.Y. Times 25 Sept. a20/3 Chimpanzees were also tested with the remodeled vaccinia virus and..the animals produced both the helper T cells that aid in antibody production and cytotoxic T cells that can actually kill infected cells.
1993 Cell 73 225/1 Thymocyte commitment to the CD4 helper versus CD8 cytotoxic lineage has not been satisfactorily established.
2003 Dominion Post (Wellington, N.Z.) (Nexis) 17 Jan. 5 The vaccine would be used to stimulate increased production of cytotoxic T lymphocytes.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1902