phytol

[fahy-tawl, -tol]

noun

Biochemistry.

1. a hydrophobic alcohol, C 2 0 H 4 0 O, that occurs esterified as a side chain in the chlorophyll molecule.

Word History and Origins

Origin of phytol¹

< German (1907); phyto-, -ol ¹

Example Sentences

Coumarin and phytol were the stand-outs, Dr Cantrell said.

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The second key ingredient he and his colleagues identified in sweetgrass was phytol, a common constituent in essential oils from plants.

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Phytol, similarly, is known to repel insects but is not currently marketed for that purpose.

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Phytol.—This alcohol, which furnishes the characteristic ester group in the chlorophyll of plants, is a compound of very unusual composition, which has never been found in any other form or in any other type of compound which is present in either plant or animal tissues.

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