ecdysone
noun
ec·dy·sone ˈek-də-ˌsōn 
variants or less commonly ecdyson
ˈek-də-ˌsän
: any of several arthropod hormones that in insects are produced by the prothoracic gland and that trigger molting and metamorphosis
Word History
Etymology
borrowed from German Ecdyson, from Ecdysis ecdysis + -on (in Hormon hormone)
Note: Name introduced by the German biochemist Peter Karlson (1918-2001) in "Chemische Untersuchungen über die Metamorphosehormone der Insekten," Annales des sciences naturelles: zoologie et biologie animale, séries 11, tome 18 (1956), pp. 125-37.
First Known Use
1956, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
ecdysone
noun
ec·dy·sone ˈek-də-ˌsōn
variants also ecdyson
-ˌsän
: any of several arthropod hormones that in insects are produced by the prothoracic gland and that trigger molting and metamorphosis