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xylan

[ zahy-lan ]
/ ˈzaɪ læn /

noun Chemistry.

the pentosan occurring in woody tissue that hydrolyzes to xylose: used as a source of furfural.

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Origin of xylan

1890–95; <Greek xýl(on) wood + -an, variant of -ane

Words nearby xylan

X-wave, XX, XXX, XXXX, XXY syndrome, xylan, xylem, xylem ray, xylene, xylic acid, xylidine
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for xylan

  • The pentosans, araban and xylan, occur normally in the stems and outer seed coats of many common plants.

    The Chemistry of Plant Life|Roscoe Wilfred Thatcher

British Dictionary definitions for xylan

xylan
/ (ˈzaɪlæn) /

noun

biochem a yellow polysaccharide consisting of xylose units: occurs in straw husks and other woody tissue
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