arabinose

American  

[uh-rab-uh-nohs, ar-uh-buh-] / əˈræb əˌnoʊs, ˈær ə bə- /

noun

Chemistry.

1. a white, crystalline, water-soluble solid, C 5 H 10 O 5 , obtained from plant gums or made synthetically from glucose, used chiefly as a culture medium in bacteriology.

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arabinose British  

/ əˈræbɪˌnəʊz, -ˌnəʊs /

noun

1. a pentose sugar in plant gums, esp of cedars and pines. It is used as a culture medium in bacteriology. Formula: C 5 H 10 O 5

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Other Word Forms

• arabinosic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of arabinose

1880–85; arabin the soluble essence of certain gums ( (gum) arab(ic) ) + -in ² ) + -ose ²

Example Sentences

Another enzyme produced by the bacteria, known as arabinose isomerase, then converts the galactose into tagatose.

From Science Daily • Jan. 13, 2026

Both approaches pointed to a gene for an enzyme that makes arabinose, a sugar found primarily in the plant cell wall, Willis reported.

From Science Magazine • Aug. 29, 2019

When hydrolyzed, they yield arabinose and a hexose; the latter is sometimes galactose and sometimes mannose.

From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Thatcher, Roscoe Wilfred

It usually happens, however, that two stereo-isomers result from the "step-up" by way of the nitrile reaction; thus, arabinose yields a mixture of glucose and mannose, glucose yields glucoheptose and mannoheptose, etc.

From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Thatcher, Roscoe Wilfred

In another trial these sugars and two others, arabinose and xylose, were tested for their protective action in freezing semen.

From Preservation of Bull Semen at Sub-Zero Temperatures by Friedman, M. E.