Definition of racemic in English:
racemic
adjective rəˈsɛmɪkrəˈsiːmɪk
Chemistry Composed of dextrorotatory and laevorotatory forms of a compound in equal proportion.
Example sentencesExamples
- It has developed a new process to separate racemic epoxides by hydrolysis.
- Phenylpropanolamine, a racemic mixture of norephedrine esters, causes a release of norepinephrine throughout the body and stimulates hypothalamic adrenoreceptors to reduce appetite.
- It has an asymmetric carbon atom and therefore has levo and dextro isomers but is supplied as a racemic mixture for anesthetic use.
- Louis Pasteur performed the first enantiomeric resolution in 1848 while studying crystals of a salt of racemic tartaric acid.
- The chemical structure of the natural form of ephedrine is levorotatory, while the synthetic ephedrine is a racemic mixture.
Derivatives
verb ˈrasɪmʌɪz
Chemistry Change into a racemic form.
no object leucine and aspartic acid racemize at different rates
Example sentencesExamples
- with object heating tends to racemize all the amino acids
- Accordingly, the extent of racemization in the total acid hydrolysate would be weighted by the degree of racemization of the remaining higher molecular weight, less racemized amino acid residues.
Origin
Early 19th century (in racemic acid): from French racémique 'derived from grape juice' (originally referring to tartaric acid in this) + -ic.