Definitions
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A class of
red andyellow indole -derivedwater -soluble pigments found inbeets and other plants of theCaryophyllales and used commercially as coloring agents.
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Coined to describe the pigments as derivatives from betalamic acid, from Latin bēta ("beet").
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Examples
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For example, beets, which contain a betalain pigment that turns hands and cooking water red, can turn urine a color that may resemble blood.
NYT > Home Page By JANE E. BRODY 2012
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