Attenuated

Attenuated
Weakened, diluted, thinned, reduced, weakened, diminished. The use of "attenuated" in medicine is not new. In the 16th century, eating dried figs was claimed to attenuate the body fluids. Now "attenuated" refers to procedures that weaken an agent of disease (a pathogen). An attenuated virus is a weakened, less vigorous virus. A vaccine against a viral disease can be made from an attenuated, less virulent strain of the virus, a virus capable of stimulating an immune response and creating immunity but not causing illness. The word "attenuated" derives from a combination of the Latin prefix "ad-" meaning "to" or "toward" and "tenuis" meaning "thin."

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • attenuated — index deficient, impalpable, narrow, nonsubstantial (not sturdy), tenuous Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • attenuated — decreased decreased adj. made less in size or amount or degree. Opposite of {increased}. [Narrower terms: {attenuate, attenuated, faded, weakened}; {belittled, diminished, small}; {cut, cut rate}; {diminished, lessened}; {minimized}; {remittent}; …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • attenuated — at|ten|u|at|ed [ ə tenju,eıtəd ] adjective 1. ) TECHNICAL long and thin: an attenuated beam of light 2. ) MEDICAL made weak or less harmful: a live attenuated vaccine …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • attenuated — [[t]əte̱njueɪtɪd[/t]] ADJ GRADED An attenuated object is unusually long and thin. [FORMAL] ...round arches and attenuated columns …   English dictionary

  • attenuated — adjective 1) attenuated fingers Syn: thin, slender, narrow, slim, skinny, spindly, bony; rare attenuate Ant: plump, broad 2) his muscle activity was much attenuated Syn …   Thesaurus of popular words

  • attenuated — UK [əˈtenjuˌeɪtɪd] / US [əˈtenjuˌeɪtəd] adjective 1) formal long and thin an attenuated beam of light 2) medical made weak or less harmful a live attenuated vaccine …   English dictionary

  • Attenuated — Attenuate At*ten u*ate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Attenuated}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Attenuating}.] [L. attenuatus, p. p. of attenuare; ad + tenuare to make thin, tenuis thin. See {Thin}.] 1. To make thin or slender, as by mechanical or chemical action… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Attenuated — Attenuate At*ten u*ate, Attenuated At*ten u*a ted, a. [L. attenuatus, p. p.] 1. Made thin or slender. [1913 Webster] 2. Made thin or less viscid; rarefied. Bacon. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • attenuated — un·attenuated; …   English syllables

  • attenuated — Weakened or thinned. Attenuated strains of disease causing bacteria and viruses are often used as vaccines. The weakened strains are used as vaccines because they stimulate a protective immune response while causing no disease or only mild… …   English dictionary of cancer terms

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