radiomimeticadj.
/ˌreɪdɪəʊmᵻˈmɛtɪk/, /ˌreɪdɪəʊmʌɪˈmɛtɪk/, U.S. /ˌreɪdioʊməˈmɛdɪk/ Medicine and Biology.
Of a substance: producing an effect on cells or tissue similar to that of ionizing radiation. Of a lesion: produced by such a substance.
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the world > matter > physics > atomic nucleus > radioactivity > ionizing radiation > [adjective]
secondary1898
radiomimetic1945
1945 Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 72 564 The prolonged metaphase stage, which was characteristic of colchicine treatment, showed chromosomes condensed into compact masses, which he described as ‘radiomimetic’.
1974 R. M. Kirk et al. Surgery ii. 9/2 Irradiation and radiomimetic drugs..administered in the treatment of neoplasms, cause delay in wound healing by their damaging effects on dividing cells.
1992 Cambr. Encycl. Human Evol. (1994) vii. iii. 272/1 Intense bursts of radiation lead to painful and persistent burns. Certain chemicals produce similar ‘radiomimetic’ sores.
1998 Environmental Health Perspectives 106 Suppl. 1. 278/3 We carried out experiments with restriction enzymes, which unlike ionizing radiation or radiomimetic chemicals, only induce one specific type of lesion, DNA double-strand breaks.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2008; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1945