alloxan

[uh-lok-suhn]

noun

Biochemistry.

1. a white crystalline pyrimidine derivative, C 4 H 2 O 4 N 2 , used in biomedical research to induce diabetes in laboratory animals.

Word History and Origins

Origin of alloxan¹

< German, equivalent to All ( antoïn ) allantoin + Ox ( alsäure ) oxalic acid + -an -an; coined by J. von Liebig in 1838

Example Sentences

Of or pertaining to alloxan; Ð applied to an acid obtained by the action of soluble alkalies on alloxan.

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Dialuric, dī-a-lū′rik, adj. pertaining to alloxan and uric acid.—n.

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Murexide is produced by the action of ammonia on alloxan, which is itself derived from the uric acid of guano by treatment with nitric acid, and was known nearly forty years back to stain the fingers and nails red.

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