Definition of "asparagine" [as•par•a•gine]

• A crystalline amino acid, C4H8N2O3, found in many proteins, and present in large amounts in some plants, such as asparagus, that is easily hydrolyzed to aspartic acid. (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.

• "It contains an amino acid called asparagine that bonus! acts as a diuretic to flush excess liquid out of your system."
• "Produced by the heat-induced reaction between sugar and an amino acid called asparagine, acrylamide burst in to the public consciousness in 2002 when Swedish scientists found high levels in carbohydrate-rich foods, like French fries and potato chips."
• "It forms when sugars and an amino acid called asparagine are heated together at high temperatures -- more than 248 degrees Fahrenheit."