Dictionary

adipocere en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈædɪpoʊˌsiɚ/
• /ˈædəpoʊˌsiɚ/

Etymology

From adipo- + Latin cēra.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) A brown, fatty, waxy substance (fatty acids) that forms on dead animal tissues in response to hydrolysis.
   • In some cases, however, brains outlast all other soft tissues and remain intact for hundreds or thousands of years. […] [Alexandra] Morton-Hayward's experiments suggest the brains endure through a process called molecular cross-linking, in which brain protein remnants and degraded lipids form a spongy polymer. […] The mechanism appears distinct from how some other bodily tissues are preserved after turning to adipocere, or "grave wax," which forms when body fats transform into a tallow-colored soaplike substance. "Adipocere forms in adipose tissue — that's buttocks, arms, cheeks," says Sonia O'Connor, an archaeologist and pioneering researcher of ancient brains at the University of Bradford in England. "There is no adipose tissue in the brain. It's the wrong chemistry." 2025, “Advances: Biology: Brain Endurance. Misfolded proteins may preserve brains for millennia”, in Scientific American, volume 332, number 2 (February), pages 10-12:

Forms

Relateds

adipoceriform · adipocerate · adipoceration · adipocerous

Synonyms

grave wax

Translations (7)

ru адипоцир (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues) · ja 屍蠟 (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues) · pt adipocera (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues) · pl wosk trupi (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues) · id adiposera (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues) · es adipocira (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues) · ru жировоск (waxy substance that forms on dead animal tissues)