Hepatotrophic

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or having the effect of stimulating growth or regeneration of liver tissue
2. Pertaining to substances or factors that promote the nourishment and development of the liver
3. Connected with the biological influence that supports liver cell maintenance and proliferation

Etymology: Hepatotrophic is a plain scientific compound, built from two Greek-derived pieces. The first, "hepato-", comes from the Greek "hepar", meaning liver, and the second, "-trophic", comes from the Greek "trophikos", meaning relating to nourishment or nutrition, from "trophē", food. Put together, the word describes something that nourishes or stimulates the liver, particularly its growth or regeneration. The "-trophic" element is a productive combining form in medicine and biology, used in the same way in words such as "neurotrophic" (relating to nerve tissue) and "cardiotrophic" (relating to the heart). Each one follows the same pattern: a body organ placed in front of "-trophic" to say which tissue the nourishing or growth-promoting effect acts on.

Synonyms: liver-nourishing, hepatotropic