Category:Saponin

Sap"o*nin, n. Etym: [l. sapo, -onis soap: cf. F. saponine.] (chem.)

Defn: a poisonous glucoside found in many plants, as in the root of Soapwort (saponaria), in the bark of soap bark (quillaia), etc. It is Extracted as a white amorphus powder, which occasions a soapy lather In solution, and produces a local anæstesia. Formerly called also Struthiin, quilaiin, senegin, polygalic acid, etc. By extension, any One of a group of related bodies of which saponin proper is the type.