Definition of "lactone" [lac•tone]

• An anhydride formed by the removal of a water molecule from the hydroxyl and carboxyl radicals of hydroxy acids. (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.

• "A lactone is a cyclic ester, a type of lactide, which is formed from dehydrated lactic acid."
• "'celloxin' C_ {6} H_8 {O} _ {6} with 1-4 mols. unaltered cellulose; and the former they particularly refer to as a lactone of glycuronic acid."
• "To communicate with its brethren, it uses a molecule called acyl-homoserine lactone, or AHL."