adjective
- containing one less oxygen atom than the parent compound; used especially in chemistry and biochemistry to describe molecules
Usage: technical; chemistry/biochemistry term; commonly used in compound terms like 'deoxyribose' and 'deoxyribonucleic acid'
Examples
- DNA stands for deoxyribonucleic acid, the molecule that carries genetic information.
- Deoxyribose is a five-carbon sugar found in DNA.
- The deoxy form of the sugar has one fewer oxygen atom than ribose.
- Scientists study deoxy compounds to understand molecular structure and function.