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glycogen

(Encyclopedia)glycogen glīˈkəjən [key], starchlike polysaccharide (see carbohydrate) that is found in the liver and muscles of humans and the higher animals and in the cells of the lower animals. Chemically it ...

saturated fat

(Encyclopedia)saturated fat, any solid fat that is an ester of glycerol and a saturated fatty acid. The molecules of a saturated fat have only single bonds between carbon atoms; if double bonds are present in the f...

catabolism

(Encyclopedia)catabolism kətăbˈəlĭzˌəm [key], subdivision of metabolism involving all degradative chemical reactions in the living cell. Large polymeric molecules such as polysaccharides, nucleic acids, and ...

Port Adelaide

(Encyclopedia)Port Adelaide, city, since 1996 part of the city of Port Adelaide Enfield (2016 pop. 121,230), South Australia, S Australia, a suburb of Adelaide, on an inlet of Gulf St. Vincent. It is the principal ...

hydrogen peroxide

(Encyclopedia)hydrogen peroxide, chemical compound, H2O2, a colorless, syrupy liquid that is a strong oxidizing agent and, in water solution, a weak acid. It is miscible with cold water and is soluble in alcohol an...

lipase

(Encyclopedia)lipase līˈpās [key], any enzyme capable of degrading lipid molecules. The bulk of dietary lipids are a class called triacylglycerols and are attacked by lipases to yield simple fatty acids and glyc...

pH

(Encyclopedia)pH, range of numbers expressing the relative acidity or alkalinity of a solution. In general, pH values range from 0 to 14. The pH of a neutral solution, i.e., one which is neither acidic nor alkaline...

phospholipid

(Encyclopedia)phospholipid fŏsˌfōlĭpˈĭd [key], lipid that in its simplest form is composed of glycerol bonded to two fatty acids and a phosphate group. The resulting compound called phosphatidic acid contains...

oxalis

(Encyclopedia)oxalis ŏkˈsəlĭs [key] or wood sorrel, any species of the plant genus Oxalis. Most of the cultivated kinds are tropical herbs used as window plants. The leaves are usually cloverlike and respond to...

vitamin

(Encyclopedia)vitamin, group of organic substances that are required in the diet of humans and animals for normal growth, maintenance of life, and normal reproduction. Vitamins act as catalysts; very often either t...