chitin
nounUK /ˈkʌɪtɪn/ · US /ˈkaɪtɪn/
Etymology From French chitine, from Latin chitōn (“mollusk”), from Ancient Greek χιτών (khitṓn). See also chiton.
1
Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Microbiology, Natural sciences, Physical sciences A complex polysaccharide, a polymer of N-acetylglucosamine, found in the exoskeletons of arthropods and in the cell walls of fungi; thought to be responsible for some forms of asthma in humans.
- Chitin usually occurs throughout Invertebrates in the form of an investment to the outermost cellular layer or ectoderm.1880, Arthur Gamgee, A Text-book of the Physiological Chemistry of the Animal Body, Macmillan, page 299:
- The robot’s energy source is the sugar in the polysaccharide called chitin that makes up a fly’s exoskeleton.2004 September 11, New Scientist, page 19:
- Derived terms
- chitinaceous, chitinase, chitinization, chitinize, chitinless, chitinlike, chitinoid, chitinolysis, chitinous, lipochitin, polychitin, pseudochitin