dextran
[ dek-struhn ]
nounChemistry, Pharmacology.
a viscous polysaccharide, composed of dextrose, produced by bacterial action on sucrose: used in confections and lacquers and in medicine chiefly as an extender for blood plasma.
Origin of dextran
1First recorded in 1875–80; dextr(ose) + an(hydride)
Words Nearby dextran
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use dextran in a sentence
Lichenin, para dextran, and para isodextran are dextrosans which have been isolated from various lower plants.
The Chemistry of Plant Life | Roscoe Wilfred Thatcher
British Dictionary definitions for dextran
dextran
/ (ˈdɛkstrən) /
noun
biochem a polysaccharide produced by the action of bacteria on sucrose: used as a substitute for plasma in blood transfusions
Origin of dextran
1C19: from dextro- + -an
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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