Betalain
//ˈbiːtəleɪn// noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A class of red and yellow indole-derived water-soluble pigments found in beets and other plants of the Caryophyllales and used commercially as coloring agents.
"Among the angiosperms, betalains are known only in the Caryophyllales, although they also occur in some Basidiomycetes."
Example
More examples"Among the angiosperms, betalains are known only in the Caryophyllales, although they also occur in some Basidiomycetes."
Etymology
Coined to describe the pigments as derivatives from betalamic acid, from Latin bēta (“beet”), + -in.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.