oxidize
Meaning of oxidize: To oxidize is to react chemically with oxygen or a similar substance, a process linked in the body to both energy production and cell damage.
Definition of oxidize
To oxidize means to undergo oxidation, a chemical reaction in which a substance loses electrons, most often through combining with oxygen or a similar reactive substance. Oxidation occurs constantly in the environment, such as when metal rusts or a cut apple browns, and it also occurs continuously within the body.
Within cells, oxidation reactions are central to how the body converts nutrients from food into usable energy, a process that takes place largely within mitochondria, the structures responsible for generating most of a cell's energy supply. These reactions are tightly regulated as part of normal metabolism.
Oxidation can also produce reactive byproducts called free radicals, unstable molecules that can damage cells, proteins, and DNA if not neutralized. The body uses antioxidants, substances that can neutralize these reactive byproducts, to help limit this form of cellular damage, and oxidative stress refers to an imbalance in which damage from oxidation outpaces the body's ability to neutralize it.
Used in a sentence
Laboratory testing measured markers thought to reflect how much cellular material had been oxidized.
Good to know
Oxidation is a normal and necessary part of cellular energy production, and it becomes clinically relevant mainly when it occurs in excess, a state described as oxidative stress rather than oxidation itself being abnormal.
Word origin
Where “oxidize” comes from
Formed from oxygen, itself derived from Greek oxys, meaning sharp or acid, combined with the verb forming suffix -ize.