- antigenic d. the particular chemical group of a molecule that determines immunological specificity. SYN: d. group.
- disease determinants any variables that directly or indirectly influence the frequency of occurrence and/or the distribution of any given disease; they include specific disease agents, host characteristics, and environmental factors.
- genetic d. any antigenic d. or identifying characteristic, particularly those of allotypes. SYN: genetic marker.
- isoallotypic determinants genetic determinants that are both isotypic and allotypic in that they appear on heavy chains of all members of at least one subclass of immunoglobulin but also on heavy chains of another subclass of the same species.
- mathematical d. a formal algebraic operation on the terms of a square matrix of quantities, fundamental in solving multiple simultaneous equations and widely used in regression analysis, notably in epidemiology and quantitative genetics. If d. is zero, the equations have no unambiguous solution.
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de·ter·mi·nant di-'tərm-(ə-)nənt n
1 a) a hypothetical aggregate of biophores conceived as comparable to the gene of more recent biological theory
b) GENE
2) EPITOPE
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de·ter·mi·nant (de-turґmĭ-nənt) [L. determinare to bound, limit, or fix] a factor that establishes the nature of an entity or event.Medical dictionary. 2011.