Warfarin

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈwɔː.fə.ɹɪn/

Definitions

1. A pharmaceutical agent used to inhibit vitamin K activity, thus reducing blood coagulation and lowering the risk of thrombosis in patients
2. An anticoagulant medication that interferes with the synthesis of clotting factors to prevent the formation of blood clots and manage vascular conditions
3. A drug that decreases blood clotting by blocking vitamin K-dependent factors to prevent harmful clots forming

Etymology: Warfarin is a coined name, built from the initials of the institution that developed it. The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation funded the research at the University of Wisconsin that led to the compound, and the first part of the name, "warf-", comes from its initials, WARF. The second part is "-arin", taken from "coumarin," the chemical family the drug belongs to. The compound grew out of a puzzle in the 1920s, when cattle in parts of North America were dying from internal bleeding after eating spoiled sweet clover hay. The toxic agent was eventually identified as a derivative of coumarin, and the chemical work that followed produced a substance that could be used safely in controlled doses.