phosphodiestern.
/ˌfɒsfə(ʊ)dʌɪˈɛstə/, U.S. /ˌfɑsfoʊˌdaɪˈɛstər/ Biochemistry.
A compound having the formula RO—PO(OH)—OR′, where R and R′ are usually nucleoside groups. Frequently attributive, designating phosphorus–oxygen bonds of the kind joining successive nucleotides in a polynucleotide.
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phosphodiester1952
1952 D. M. Brown et al. in Jrnl. Chem. Soc. iii. 2708 In the specific case of the adenylic acids a and b it was shown that their monobenzyl esters did not show the normal stability of phosphodiesters towards alkali.
1953 J. S. Fruton & S. Simmonds Gen. Biochem. vii. 190 The products obtained from PNA preparations have been shown to be chains of nucleosides linked by 3′,5′- (or 2′,5′-)phosphodiester bonds.
1975 Sci. Amer. July 25/3 A DNA strand is a chain of nucleotides... The individual nucleotide building blocks are connected by phosphodiester bonds between the carbon atom at position No. 3 on one sugar and the carbon atom at position No. 5 on the adjacent sugar.
1994 Sci. Amer. Mar. 11/1 Compounds known as phosphodiesters are also present in elevated amounts in schizophrenics, a finding that could indicate that in such patients the breakdown of neural membranes is accelerated.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1952