Etymology

zymogen

Z10Y4M3O1G2E1N1

Today it means: A proenzyme, or enzyme precursor, which requires a biochemical change (i.e. hydrolysis) to become an active form of the enzyme. Full definition →

Ancient Greek γένος (génos) ← Proto-Hellenic *génos ← Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*yéwHs
  2. Proto-Indo-European*yúHs-meh₂
  3. Ancient Greekζῡ́μη (zū́mē)
  4. Englishzymo-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*ǵenh₁-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*ǵénh₁os
  7. Proto-Hellenic*génos
  8. Ancient Greekγένος (génos)
  9. English todayzymogen

From zymo- + -gen.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.