noun
- Plural of epimer; stereoisomers that differ in configuration at only one stereogenic center.
Usage: chemistry; biochemistry; technical term
Examples
- Glucose and mannose are epimers that differ only in the configuration at the second carbon atom.
- The two epimers have identical molecular formulas but different three-dimensional structures.
- In carbohydrate chemistry, epimers are important for understanding sugar reactivity.
- Alpha and beta glucose are anomeric epimers of the same monosaccharide.
- Chemists use epimers to study how small structural changes affect molecular properties.