noun
BiochemistryA dye (more fully "propidium iodide") which is a salt of a cation related to phenanthridine and is used as a fluorescent stain for DNA, to which it binds by intercalating between the bases.
Formula: C₂₇H₃₄N₄I₂.
Origin
1960s. From prop- + -ide + -ium, after ethidium.
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