deconjugates

Deconjugates refers, in general terms, to the reversal or removal of conjugation in a form, with use varying by field. In linguistics, deconjugation describes transforming an inflected word back to its base form or lemma by stripping away affixes that encode tense, person, number, mood, or aspect. While the concept is central to lemmatization and dictionary matching in natural language processing, the term itself is not always preferred; practitioners more commonly speak of lemmatizing or normalizing inflection. The specific rules for deconjugation depend on the language, and irregular morphology or suppletive forms can complicate automatic processing.

In pharmacology and biochemistry, deconjugation denotes the hydrolytic removal of conjugate groups from drug metabolites or endogenous compounds. Conjugation reactions such as glucuronidation, sulfation, or glutathione conjugation increase water solubility to facilitate excretion. Deconjugation, often enzymatic, can occur in tissues or via gut microbiota and enzymes like beta-glucuronidase or sulfatases. This reversal can regenerate the parent drug or active metabolites, influencing enterohepatic recirculation, duration of action, and potential toxicity or drug interactions. Although the process is functionally a reversal of conjugation, most literature uses deconjugation rather than a plural form like “deconjugates.”

Etymologically, the term combines Latin de- 'remove' and conjugatus 'joined together.' Across domains, deconjugation and related language forms describe reversing a prior conjugation step, though the precise meaning and terminology differ by discipline. See also lemmatization, conjugation, hydrolysis, and enterohepatic circulation.