brucine
/ˈbɹuːsiːn/ noun
Forms brucines
- noun (organic chemistry) An alkaloid related to strychnine, found in several plant species, notably Strychnos nux-vomica (nux vomica).
Synonyms
brucia
Etymology
Borrowed from French, from the taxonomic name Brucea + -ine, thus indirectly named after Scottish explorer James Bruce.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A poweful vegetable alkaloid, found, associated with strychnine, in the seeds of different species of Strychnos, especially in the Nux vomica. It is less powerful than strychnine.
Etymology [Cf. F. brucine, fr. James Bruce, a Scottish traveler.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “brucine”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details