myristic acid

noun

my·​ris·​tic acid mə-ˈri-stik- 

mī-

: a crystalline fatty acid C₁₄H₂₈O₂ occurring especially in the form of glycerides in most fats

Examples of myristic acid in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The crucial recipe was a mixture of myristic acid, palmitic acid, and palmitoleic acid, all of which were isolated from the milky part of the blood that Leinwand had observed in her first experiment. —Anthony King, Discover Magazine, 4 June 2012

For example in butter, oleic acid (32%), myristic acid (20%), palmitic acid (15%) and searic acid (15%) make up the greatest percentage of the fatty acids [2]. —Vince C Reyes, Discover Magazine, 28 May 2013

The blood of fasted and fed pythons contained very different blends of fatty acids, and the team identified three that are particularly important – myristic acid, palmitic acid and palmitoleic acid. —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 27 Oct. 2011

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary, from New Latin Myristica, genus of trees

First Known Use

1841, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

myristic acid

noun

my·​ris·​tic acid mi-ˌris-tik-  mī- 

: a crystalline fatty acid C₁₄H₂₈O₂ occurring especially in the form of glycerides in most fats

called also tetradecanoic acid