Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A nucleoside analog drug that inhibits the replication of retroviruses such as HIV by interfering with the enzyme reverse transcriptase.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun acronym same as azidothymidine.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • initialism azidothymidine

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an antiviral drug (trade name Retrovir) used in the treatment of AIDS; adverse side effects include liver damage and suppression of the bone marrow

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[az(ido)t(hymidine).]

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Examples

  • She needed a C-section and a medicine called AZT to cut the risk that her baby would contract HIV during birth.

    The Patient Nobody Wanted 2008

  • Researchers in Thailand found that a four-week course of zidovudine, also known as AZT, the first antiretroviral drug approved for the treatment of HIV, could reduce transmission rates by 50 percent.

    No Place Left to Bury the Dead Nicole Itano 2007

  • Deputy President Thabo Mbeki and his inter-ministerial committee on Aids on Tuesday backed the department of health's controversial decision not to administer the drug azidothymidine, commonly known as AZT, to pregnant women because of cost implications.

    ANC Daily News Briefing 1998

  • The Caesar scientists gave a drug called lamivudine to 1,895 patients from around the world who were already taking zidovudine - also known as AZT, which is the first drug found to have a beneficial effect on HIV-positive patients, Lancet said.

    ANC Daily News Briefing 1997

  • Approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1997, Combivir was the first pill to combine HIV drugs, and it contained the first ever agent approved for the treatment of AIDS - zidovudine (better known as AZT), as well as lamivudine (3TC).

    TIME.com: Top Stories 2009

  • That's because Amazon decided to use a proprietary format, called AZT, to display the books it sells for viewing on the Kindle.

    LXer Linux News 2009

  • That's because Amazon decided to use a proprietary format, called AZT, to display the books it sells for viewing on the Kindle.

    LXer Linux News 2009

  • FDA-approved antiviral protocols to treat HIV such as AZT and alpha interferon were NOT widely available for most AIDS patients.

    Election Central | Talking Points Memo | Huckabee On 1992 AIDS Stance: "Safety First, Political Correctness Last" 2009

  • FDA-approved antiviral protocols to treat HIV such as AZT and alpha interferon were NOT widely available for most AIDS patients.

    Huckabee On 1992 AIDS Stance: "Safety First, Political Correctness Last" 2009

  • "We can only be grateful that there are people like Dr Wulfsohn prepared to help out, even though doctors at Johannesburg Hospital are forbidden from prescribing AZT which is an absolute scandal."

    ANC Daily News Briefing 2001

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