diastase Meaning, Definition & Usage
Di"a*stase noun
Etymology
Gr. separation, fr. , to stand apart; through + , , to stand, set: cf. F.Definitions
(Physiol. Chem.) A soluble, nitrogenous ferment, capable of converting starch and dextrin into sugar. ✍ The name is more particularly applied to that ferment formed during the germination of grain, as in the malting of barley; but it is also occasionally used to designate the amylolytic ferment contained in animal fluids, as in the saliva.