myristic acid
/mʌɪˈrɪstɪk
/ /mɪ-/noun [mass noun] Chemistry
A compound present in oil of nutmeg and other natural fats.
- A straight-chain fatty acid; chemical formula: CH3(CH2)12COOH.
- The yeast AMPK b subunits are lipid modified with myristic acid.
- Moderate quantities of myristic acid, cis-eicosenoic acid, and behenic acid were also identified, and together these fatty acids made up 10 to 14% of the fatty acids analyzed.
Origin
Mid 19th century: myristic from modern Latin Myristica (genus name), from medieval Latin (nux) myristica 'nutmeg', from Greek murizein 'anoint'.