plasmid
noun
plas·mid ˈplaz-məd 
: an extrachromosomal ring of DNA especially of bacteria that replicates autonomously
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web So the team instead engineered a plasmid that makes E. coli construct shorter protein fragments that are structured to spontaneously link together inside the bacterium. 
Connie Chang, Scientific American, 12 Nov. 2021 The company has claimed that the three-dose vaccine, built on the plasmid DNA platform, has 66.6% efficacy against symptomatic Covid-19. Manavi Kapur, Quartz, 23 Aug. 2021 The company’s tools allow scientists to assemble DNA fragments into a large circular plasmid and then amplify the circular DNA quickly. John Cumbers, Forbes, 6 July 2021 In the case of Covid-19, spike proteins are this key information that the plasmid vaccine wants to deliver to the nucleus of a cell. Manavi Kapur, Quartz, 23 Aug. 2021 The applications for producing large amounts of plasmid DNA are enormous for biopharma and other industries. John Cumbers, Forbes, 6 July 2021 Each plasmid contains a coronavirus gene, the genetic instructions for a human cell to build coronavirus proteins and trigger an immune response to the virus. New York Times, 28 Apr. 2021 From Missouri, the plasmid is flown to Pfizer’s campus in Andover, Massachusetts, where it is incubated in a bath of enzymes and nucleotides—the building blocks of RNA—for several hours. Sue Halpern, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2021 Once the plasmid is made, purified, and tested, the double-helix structure of the DNA has to be linearized—literally, made linear. Sue Halpern, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2021 See More
Connie Chang, Scientific American, 12 Nov. 2021 The company has claimed that the three-dose vaccine, built on the plasmid DNA platform, has 66.6% efficacy against symptomatic Covid-19. Manavi Kapur, Quartz, 23 Aug. 2021 The company’s tools allow scientists to assemble DNA fragments into a large circular plasmid and then amplify the circular DNA quickly. John Cumbers, Forbes, 6 July 2021 In the case of Covid-19, spike proteins are this key information that the plasmid vaccine wants to deliver to the nucleus of a cell. Manavi Kapur, Quartz, 23 Aug. 2021 The applications for producing large amounts of plasmid DNA are enormous for biopharma and other industries. John Cumbers, Forbes, 6 July 2021 Each plasmid contains a coronavirus gene, the genetic instructions for a human cell to build coronavirus proteins and trigger an immune response to the virus. New York Times, 28 Apr. 2021 From Missouri, the plasmid is flown to Pfizer’s campus in Andover, Massachusetts, where it is incubated in a bath of enzymes and nucleotides—the building blocks of RNA—for several hours. Sue Halpern, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2021 Once the plasmid is made, purified, and tested, the double-helix structure of the DNA has to be linearized—literally, made linear. Sue Halpern, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
plasma + -id entry 2
First Known Use
1952, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
plasmid
noun
plas·mid ˈplaz-məd
: an extrachromosomal ring of DNA that replicates autonomously and is found especially in bacteria compare episome