physostigmine. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

physostigmine

SYLLABICATION:	phy·so·stig·mine
PRONUNCIATION:	fs-stgmn
VARIANT FORMS:	also phy·so·stig·min (-mn)
NOUN:	A crystalline alkaloid, C₁₅H₂₁N₃O₂, extracted from the Calabar bean, used in medicine as a miotic and cholinergic agent and to enhance memory in patients with Alzheimer's disease. Also called eserine.
ETYMOLOGY:	New Latin Phsostigma, genus name of the Calabar bean ( Greek phsa, bellows + stigma) + –ine².


The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.