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lysine

(Encyclopedia)CE5 lysine līˈsēn [key], organic compound, one of the 20 amino acids commonly found in animal proteins. Only the l-stereoisomer appears in mammalian protein. It is one of several essential amino...

respiration

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Respiratory system respiration, process by which an organism exchanges gases with its environment. The term now refers to the overall process by which oxygen is abstracted from air and is tran...

thymine

(Encyclopedia)thymine thīˈmēn [key], organic base of the pyrimidine family. Thymine was the first pyrimidine to be purified from a natural source, having been isolated from calf thymus and beef spleen in 1893–...

enzyme

(Encyclopedia)enzyme, biological catalyst. The term enzyme comes from zymosis, the Greek word for fermentation, a process accomplished by yeast cells and long known to the brewing industry, which occupied the atten...

photosynthesis

(Encyclopedia)photosynthesis fōˌtōsĭnˈthəsĭs [key], process in which green plants, algae, and cyanobacteria utilize the energy of sunlight to manufacture carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water in the pr...

metal

(Encyclopedia)metal, chemical element displaying certain properties by which it is normally distinguished from a nonmetal, notably its metallic luster, the capacity to lose electrons and form a positive ion, and th...

vitamin

(Encyclopedia)vitamin, group of organic substances that are required in the diet of humans and animals for normal growth, maintenance of life, and normal reproduction. Vitamins act as catalysts; very often either t...

nutrition

(Encyclopedia)nutrition, study of the materials that nourish an organism and of the manner in which the separate components are used for maintenance, repair, growth, and reproduction. Nutrition is achieved in vario...

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