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toxin definition

toxin (täk′sin)

noun

  1. any of various poisonous compounds produced by some microorganisms and causing certain diseases
  2. any of various similar poisons, related to proteins, formed in certain plants, as ricin, or secreted by certain animals, as snake venom: toxins, when injected into animals or humans, typically initiate the formation of antitoxins

Etymology: tox(ic) + -in

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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