A substance added to a vaccine or medicine to help the body's immune system respond more strongly to the treatment.
From Latin adjuvāns, present participle of adjuvāre (to help, aid), from ad- (to) + juvāre (to help). The word was adopted into medical terminology in the 20th century.
COVID vaccines made adjuvants famous—compounds like lipid nanoparticles are added to signal your immune system: 'Hey, this is important, wake up!' Without adjuvants, many vaccines wouldn't work well enough.
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