amyloid

[am-uh-loid]

noun

Biochemistry. a waxy, translucent substance, composed primarily of protein fibers, that is deposited in various organs of animals in certain diseases.
a nonnitrogenous food consisting especially of starch.

adjective

Also am·y·loi·dal. of, resembling, or containing amylum.

Origin of amyloid

First recorded in 1855–60; amyl- + -oid

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for amyloid

Contemporary Examples of amyloid

If any of these got prioritized and funded to the extent of amyloid, we might be a lot closer to getting a drug than we are now.
Twenty Years of Alzheimer’s Research May Have Focused on the Wrong Protein
Elizabeth Lopatto
April 4, 2014

Historical Examples of amyloid

Amylaceous, Amyloid, composed of starch (amylum), or starch-like.
The Elements of Botany
Asa Gray
As is well known, the amyloid material itself resists the action of the gastric juice.
A System of Practical Medicine By American Authors, Vol. II
Various
Amyloid degeneration of the blood-vessels is a doubtful cause of hemorrhage.
A System of Practical Medicine By American Authors, Vol. II
Various
Lardaceous (amyloid or waxy) degeneration of the intestinal mucous membrane is met with in chronic catarrh.
A System of Practical Medicine By American Authors, Vol. II
Various
The liver, besides the change due to cirrhosis, may be affected by amyloid or fatty degeneration, or by both combined.
A System of Practical Medicine By American Authors, Vol. II
Various

British Dictionary definitions for amyloid

amyloid

noun

pathol a complex protein resembling starch, deposited in tissues in some degenerative diseases
any substance resembling starch

adjective

starchlike

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

Word Origin and History for amyloid

adj.

"starch-like," 1857, coined in German (1839) from Latin amylum (see amyl) + Greek-derived suffix -oid. The noun is attested from 1872.

amyloid in Medicine

amyloid

[ăm′ə-loid′]

A starchlike substance.
A hard, waxy deposit consisting of protein and polysaccharides resulting from the degeneration of tissue.

adj.

Starchlike.

amyloid in Science

amyloid

[ăm′ə-loid′]

Noun

A hard waxy substance consisting of protein and polysaccharides that results from the degeneration of tissue and is deposited in organs or tissues of the body in various chronic diseases.

Adjective

Starchlike.