IUPAC Glossary of Terms Used in Toxicology - Terms Starting with K

kairomone
Semiochemical that is produced by one organism inducing a response in an organism of another species that is unfavorable to the emitter.
Related terms: allomone, synomone

kinetics (in chemistry)
Branch of chemistry concerned with measuring and studying rates of chemical reactions.
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ketone bodies
Acetoacetate, beta-hydroxybutyrate and acetone, produced from acetyl-CoA, mainly in the mitochondria of liver cells when carbohydrates are so scarce that energy must be obtained from breaking down fatty acids; beta-hydroxybutyrate is not itself a ketone but is called a ketone body because, like the other compounds, it is produced from ketones.

ketosis
Pathological increase in the production of ketone bodies, e.g., following blockage or failure of carbohydrate metabolism.

kinetics (in toxicology)
See toxicokinetics

knock-down
Technique used to decrease the expression of a particular gene in a cell or living organism in order to define its function.

knock-in
Technique used to express a exogenous gene or to overexpress an endogenous gene in a living organism in order to define its function.
Note: In mammalian toxicology, this technique is most readily applied to the mouse.

knock-out (in biology)
Technique used to inactivate a particular gene in a living organism in order to define its function.
Note: In mammalian toxicology, this technique is most readily applied to the mouse.
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