bile salt

noun

, Physiology.

1. a product of a bile acid and a base, functioning as an emulsifier of lipids and fatty acids for absorption in the duodenum.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bile salt¹

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

The researchers, who published their results recently in Nature, identified a new role for an old bacterial enzyme, known as bile salt hydrolase, or BSH.

From Science Daily

Instead, divers manually inject them with vinegar or bile salts, which kill the animals without adding chemicals that might harm other marine creatures into the environment.

From National Geographic

That changed in 2014 with advancements in Deep Learning technology, which allowed Dunbabin’s team to construct a robot that could be programmed to detect and inject the starfish with bile salts all while operating autonomously.

From Washington Post

The liver makes bile salts out of cholesterol, so as bile acids are broken down, the organ pulls more cholesterol out of the blood to replace them — lowering the levels of LDL in the blood.

From Nature

The divers inject the starfish with a solution of bile salts or white vinegar, which kill the starfish without hurting other marine life.

From New York Times