betaine

American  

[bee-tuh-een, -in, bih-tey-een, -in] / ˈbi təˌin, -ɪn, bɪˈteɪ in, -ɪn /

Also betain

noun

Chemistry, Pharmacology.

1. a colorless, crystalline, water-soluble, sweet-tasting alkaloid, C 5 H 11 NO 2 , usually obtained from sugar beets or synthesized from glycine, used chiefly in medicine.

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betaine British  

/ -ɪn, -ɪn, ˈbiːtəˌiːn, bɪˈteɪiːn /

noun

1. a sweet-tasting alkaloid that occurs in the sugar beet and other plants and in animals. Formula: C 5 H 11 NO 2

2. (plural) a group of chemical compounds that resemble betaine and are slightly basic zwitterions

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betaine Scientific  

/ bē′tə-ēn′,-ĭn /

1. Any of a class of organic salts that are derived from amino acids and have a cationic (positively charged) component that consists of a nitrogen atom attached to three methyl (CH ₃) groups.

2. A salt of this class that is a sweet crystalline alkaloid first found in sugar beets but also widely occurring in other plants and in animals. Betaine is used in the treatment of muscular weakness and degeneration. Chemical formula: C ₅ H ₁₁ NO ₂ .

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Etymology

Origin of betaine

1875–80; < Latin bēta beet + -ine ²