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Definition of "hemolysin" [hemolysin]

  • An agent or substance, such as an antibody or a bacterial toxin, that causes the destruction of red blood cells, thereby liberating hemoglobin. (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 "hemolysin" in a sentence
  • "In fact, Bayley stayed away from DNA sequencing as a professional courtesy to Branton, making progress in chemically modifying the hemolysin to use it as a single-molecule sensor for drugs, chemicals, and metal ions."
  • "The technique involves creating a lipid bilayer membrane similar to those in living cells, and "drilling" a pore in it with a protein (alpha-hemolysin) produced by the Staphyloccoccus aureus bacteria specifically to penetrate cell membranes."
  • "Because the dimensions of the lipid bilayer and the alpha-hemolysin pore, as well as the required amount of electrical current, are at the nanoscale level, the "single-molecule mass spectrometry" technology may one day be incorporated into "lab-on-a-chip" molecular analyzers and single-strand DNA sequencers."