urease-inhibitor
|u-rease-in-hib-i-tor|
🇺🇸
/jʊəˈriːs ɪnˈhɪbətɚ/
🇬🇧
/jʊəˈriːs ɪnˈhɪbɪtə/
blocks or slows urease activity
Etymology
'urease-inhibitor' is a compound formed from 'urease' + 'inhibitor'. 'urease' itself is formed from 'urea' + the enzyme suffix '-ase' (used to name enzymes), and 'inhibitor' comes from Latin 'inhibere' meaning 'to hold back or restrain'.
'urea' was coined in modern chemical nomenclature (Neo-Latin/18th–19th c. usage) from French 'urée' and from earlier Latinized forms; the enzyme-naming suffix '-ase' was introduced in the late 19th century to form 'urease'; 'inhibitor' derives from Middle French/Latin developments of 'inhibere' and entered English as 'inhibitor'. The modern compound 'urease-inhibitor' follows standard English compounding patterns to denote an agent that inhibits urease.
Originally, 'urea' referred to the organic compound; with biochemical nomenclature the suffix '-ase' produced 'urease' meaning 'the enzyme acting on urea.' 'Inhibitor' originally meant 'one that holds back'; combined, the compound now specifically means 'an agent that reduces or blocks urease activity.'
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a chemical substance that inhibits the enzyme urease (which catalyzes the hydrolysis of urea); used to slow urea breakdown (e.g., in fertilizers) to reduce ammonia volatilization and nitrogen loss, or to reduce urease activity from pathogens in medical contexts.
Farmers often add a urease-inhibitor to urea-based fertilizer to slow hydrolysis and reduce ammonia volatilization.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/11/27 07:33