ouabain

[ wah-bah-in ]

noun

, Pharmacology.

1. a glycoside occurring as a white, crystalline powder, C 2 9 H 4 4 O 1 2 , obtained from the seeds of a shrub, Strophanthus gratus, or from the wood of trees of the genus Acokanthera, and used in medicine chiefly as a cardiac stimulant.

ouabain

/ ˈwɑːbɑːɪn /

noun

1. a poisonous white crystalline glycoside extracted from certain trees and used as a heart stimulant and, by some African tribes, on poison darts. Formula: C 29 H 44 O 12 .8H 2 O

Word History and Origins

Origin of ouabain¹

1890–95; < French ouaba ( ïo ) (< Somali waabayyo arrow poison) + -in ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of ouabain¹

C19: from French ouabaïo, from Somali waba yo native name of tree