Underreplicated

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Describing a study, result, or experiment that has not been repeated by other researchers as often as it should be to confirm its findings
2. Referring to research or data that has seldom been duplicated or independently reproduced, leaving its reliability open to question
3. Characterizing an experiment or finding that few or no investigators have attempted to copy, so its validity remains unverified

Etymology: "Underreplicated" is formed from the prefix "under-" attached to "replicated," the past participle of "replicate." The prefix means "insufficiently" or "to a lesser degree than is needed," so the word describes something that has been copied or reproduced fewer times than it should be. Its usefulness is most evident in technical and scientific contexts, where it is applied to genetic sequences, DNA regions, or data that fail to duplicate in the way a process requires.

Antonyms: overreplicated