endotoxin

[ en-doh-tok-sin ]

nounBiochemistry.
  1. the toxic protoplasm liberated when a microorganism dies and disintegrates, as in Eberthella typhi, the causative agent of typhoid fever.

Compare Meanings

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

Origin of endotoxin

1
First recorded in 1900–05; endo- + toxin

Other words from endotoxin

  • en·do·tox·ic, adjective

Words Nearby endotoxin

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use endotoxin in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for endotoxin

endotoxin

/ (ˌɛndəʊˈtɒksɪn) /


noun
  1. a toxin contained within the protoplasm of an organism, esp a bacterium, and liberated only at death

Derived forms of endotoxin

  • endotoxic, adjective

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