Adenine
/ˈæd.ə.niːn/noun
A nitrogen-containing organic compound and one of the four nucleobases found in DNA and RNA.
Did you know?Adenine was named in 1885 after being isolated from pancreatic tissue, whose glandular origin inspired the Greek root for “gland.”
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
ἀδήν (adēn)
“Gland; a glandular swelling”
19th Century
German
Adenin
“A newly identified nitrogenous compound named from Greek adēn, “gland””
1885
German
Adenin
“Term introduced for the compound isolated from pancreatic material”
Late 19th Century
Scientific English
adenine
“English chemical name formed with the scientific suffix -ine”
Modern English
English
adenine
“A purine nucleobase that pairs with thymine in DNA and uracil in RNA”