pellagra

[ puh-lag-ruh, -ley-gruh, -lah- ]

/ pəˈlæg rə, -ˈleɪ grə, -ˈlɑ- /

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noun Pathology.

a disease caused by a deficiency of niacin in the diet, characterized by skin changes, severe nerve dysfunction, mental symptoms, and diarrhea.

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Origin of pellagra

1805–15; <Italian <New Latin: skin disease, equivalent to pell(is) skin + -agra<Greek ágra seizure

OTHER WORDS FROM pellagra

pel·la·grose, pel·la·grous, adjective

Words nearby pellagra

pelike, Pelion, pelisse, pelite, Pella, pellagra, pellagra-preventive factor, pellagrin, Pellan, pellekar, Pelles

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pellagra in a sentence

The Italian disease, pellagra, manifests the features one would expect from an improper food taken under unhygienic conditions.
Degeneracy|Eugene S. Talbot
Usually, where a mixed diet with meat is possible, pellagra never appears.
Rural Hygiene|Henry N. Ogden
The firm quotes but one paper (which is a very uncritical report) in regard to pellagra.
The Propaganda for Reform in Proprietary Medicines, Vol. 2 of 2|Various
(c) Arrange a well balanced diet for pellagra in which forty grams of protein shall come from milk, meat or eggs.
Dietetics for Nurses|Fairfax T. Proudfit

The accumulated evidence is increasingly opposed to Sambon's hypothesis of the transmission of pellagra by Simulium.
Handbook of Medical Entomology|William Albert Riley

British Dictionary definitions for pellagra

pellagra

/ (pəˈleɪɡrə, -ˈlæ-) /

noun

pathol a disease caused by a dietary deficiency of nicotinic acid, characterized by burning or itching often followed by scaling of the skin, inflammation of the mouth, diarrhoea, mental impairment, etc

Derived forms of pellagra

pellagrous, adjective

Word Origin for pellagra

C19: via Italian from pelle skin + -agra, from Greek agra paroxysm

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

Scientific definitions for pellagra

pellagra

[ pə-lăg′rə, -lā′grə ]

A disease caused by a lack of niacin in the diet, characterized by skin and digestive disorders and mental deterioration.