Dictionary

American Type Culture Collection The world’s premier biological culture repository, and a key resource for medical research.

AMI Acute myocardial infarction.

An amine is an organic compound derived from ammonia (NH3) by replacing one or more hydrogen atoms with alkyl or aryl groups. This substitution gives amines a nitrogen atom bonded to carbon atoms and possibly hydrogens, with the nitrogen retaining a lone pair of electrons. Amines are classified based on how many hydrogens in the…

amino acid One of the 20 building blocks from which proteins are assembled. Isoleucine, leucine, lysine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine are deemed “essential” amino acids because the human body cannot make them and they must be obtained in the diet. Amino acids are sometimes taken orally in supplement form.

amino acid screen A screening blood or urine test that returns information about the levels of amino acids. An amino acid screen is useful in diagnosing certain conditions, including the inborn errors of amino acid metabolisms such as phenylketonuria (PKU).

aminotransferase An enzyme that catalyzes the transfer of an amino group from a donor molecule to a recipient molecule. The donor molecule is usually an amino acid and the recipient molecule is usually an alpha-2 keto acid. Two of the best-known enzymes in this class are serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT) and serum glutamic pyruvic…

amitriptyline A tricyclic antidepressant drug (brand name: Elavil) prescribed to treat depression, chronic pain, migraines, eating disorders, and a wide variety of other conditions. See also tricyclic antidepressant.

AML See leukemia, acute myeloid.

amnesia An impairment to or lack of memory. Antegrade amnesia refers to a lack of memory of events occurring after a traumatic event, whereas retrograde amnesia refers to lack of memory of events that occurred before the event.

amniocentesis A before-birth diagnostic procedure during which a long needle is used to obtain amniotic fluid from within the uterus. This fluid can be used for genetic and other diagnostic tests. Informally known as amnio.

amnion A thin membrane that surrounds the fetus during pregnancy. The amnion is the inner of the two fetal membranes (the chorion is the outer one), and it contains the amniotic fluid.

amniotic fluid The fluid bathing a fetus within the uterus, which serves as a shock absorber.