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Definition of "dextran" [dextran]

  • Any of a group of long-chain polymers of glucose with various molecular weights that are used in confections, in lacquers, as food additives, and as plasma volume expanders. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "dextran" in a sentence
  • "The researchers, Yi-Chun Wu, Huan-Cheng Chang, and colleagues, coated some nanodiamonds with sugars or proteins (such as dextran and bovine serum albumin), and then introduced both coated and uncoated types to transparent round worms (Caenorhabditis elegans)."
  • "All parenteral iron preparations consist of a central core containing elemental iron, shielded by a carbohydrate shell consisting of molecules such as dextran, sucrose, dextrin or gluconate."
  • "Safety and efficacy of iron dextran infusions with inflammatory bowel disease and iron deficiency anemia"