pepsin

American  

[pep-sin] / ˈpɛp sɪn /

Or pepsine

noun

Biochemistry.

1. an enzyme, produced in the stomach, that in the presence of hydrochloric acid splits proteins into proteoses and peptones.

2. a commercial form of this substance, obtained from the stomachs of hogs, used as a digestive, as a ferment in the manufacture of cheese, etc.

---

pepsin British  

/ ˈpɛpsɪn /

noun

1. a proteolytic enzyme produced in the stomach in the inactive form pepsinogen, which, when activated by acid, splits proteins into peptones

---

pepsin Scientific  

/ pĕp′sĭn /

1. Any of various digestive enzymes found in vertebrate animals that catalyze the hydrolysis of proteins to peptides.

---

Etymology

Origin of pepsin

1835–45; < Greek péps ( is ) digestion ( pep-, base of péptein to digest + -sis -sis ) + -in ²

Example Sentences

When digesting protein and some fats, the stomach lining must be protected from getting digested by pepsin.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Hydrochloric acid helps to convert the inactive pepsinogen to pepsin.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

The enzyme pepsin plays an important role in the digestion of proteins by breaking down the intact protein to peptides, which are short chains of four to nine amino acids.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

The highly acidic environment kills many microorganisms in the food and, combined with the action of the enzyme pepsin, results in the catabolism of protein in the food.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

The soft drink had been named for the digestive enzyme pepsin, he sagely told us, and so was suited to the task.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides