carnitine

[ kahr-ni-teen ]

noun

, Biochemistry.

1. a dipolar compound that occurs in muscle and liver and is involved in the transport of fatty acids across the inner mitochondrial membrane.

carnitine

/ kär′nĭ-tēn′ /

1. A betaine commonly occurring in the liver and in skeletal muscle that is essential for fatty acid transport across mitochondrial membranes. Chemical formula: C 7 H 15 NO 3 .

Word History and Origins

Origin of carnitine¹

1920–25; < German Carnitin, equivalent to Latin carni- (combining form of carō, genitive carnis meat, flesh) + -tin apparently arbitrarily chosen suffix ( -in ², -ine ² ); so called because it was first isolated in meat extract

Example Sentences

Over time, their gut bacteria had changed, so they no longer had lots of bacteria that like to eat carnitine.

From The Daily Beast