Diastase

1 definition found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Diastase \Di"a*stase\, n. [Gr. ? separation, fr. ?, ? to stand
     apart; dia` through + ?, ?, to stand, set: cf. F. diastase.
     Cf. {Diastasis}.] (Physiol. Chem.)
     A soluble enzyme, capable of converting starch and dextrin
     into sugar.
     [1913 Webster]


  
     Note: The name is more particularly applied to that enzyme
           formed during the germination of grain, as in the
           malting of barley; but it is also occasionally used to
           designate the amylolytic enzyme contained in animal
           fluids, as in the saliva.
           [1913 Webster]