Glyceollins

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Natural compounds produced by soybeans in response to stress or infection and believed to have antioxidant and potential anti-cancer properties
2. A group of phytoalexins synthesized by soybean plants when threatened by pathogens, noted for their possible health benefits including fighting oxidative damage
3. Bioactive molecules generated by soybean cells under duress that may contribute to protective effects against oxidative stress and certain diseases such as cancer

Etymology: The name is a modern chemist's coinage built on "Glycine," the genus of the soybean plant. That genus name appears to come from the Greek "glykys," meaning "sweet," the same root that gives us the amino acid glycine. The suffix "-in" marks it as a chemical compound. The compounds are "phytoalexins," from Greek "phyton," plant, and "alexein," to ward off. Soybeans make them when attacked by fungi or other pathogens, or when stressed, which is why they belong to a class defined by a defensive role rather than a structure. The name identifies the source and the function, not the molecule's shape.

Synonyms: glyceollin compounds