Category: Za-Zz

A triptan drug for the treatment of migraine. Marketed under the brand name Zomig.

A rare disorder caused by a tumor called a gastrinoma, most often occurring in the pancreas. The tumor secretes the hormone gastrin, which causes increased production of gastric acid leading to severe recurrent ulcers of the esophagus, stomach, and the upper portions of the small intestine (the duodenum and jejunum). Gastrinomas resulting in the Zollinger-Ellison’s syndrome are not limited to the pancreas but…

A mineral that is essential to the body and is a constituent of many enzymes that permit chemical reactions to proceed at normal rates. Zinc is involved in the manufacture of protein (protein synthesis) and in cell division. Zinc is also a constituent of insulin, and it is involved with the sense of smell. Food sources of zinc include meat, particularly liver and…

Stands for zygote intrafallopian transfer, a method used to treat infertility in which an egg fertilized in vitro (outside the body) is placed into a woman’s fallopian tube. This technique is one used to overcome infertility, the inability of couples to produce offspring on their own. The egg and the male sperm needed to fertilize it are harvested. Then…

An environmental agent or event that provides the cue for setting or resetting a biological clock. To be synchronized with our environment, we need the input of Zeitgebers. The most important Zeitgeber in nature is light. Social factors, chemical factors and activity can also serve as Zeitgebers. Light is a so-called photic type Zeitgeber, whereas activity, for example,…

In medicine, a very unlikely diagnostic possibility. It comes from an old saying used in teaching medical students about how to think logically in regard to the differential diagnosis: ‘When you hear hoof beats, think of horses, not zebras.’ For example, when someone develops a mild transient cough, a virus infection is the most logical and…

A sex chromosome in certain animals, such as chickens, turkeys, and moths. In humans, males are XY and females XX, but in animals with a Z chromosome, males are ZZ and females are WZ.