folic acid

English

Etymology

From Latin folium (“leaf”), from its occurrence in leafy vegetables.

Noun

folic acid (uncountable)

  1. (biochemistry, organic chemistry) A polycyclic heterocyclic carboxylic acid, one of the vitamin B complex, essential for cell growth and reproduction
    Synonyms: vitamin B9, vitamin Bc, vitamin M, pteroylglutamic acid

Usage notes

  • Not to be confused with folinic acid, a chemotherapeutic medication.

Coordinate terms

  • folate (coordinate as a base versus an acid, but synonymous in the practical sense that the conjugate base and conjugate acid coexist in solution)

Translations

This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.