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provitamin

 
Dictionary: pro·vi·ta·min   (prō-vī'tə-mĭn) pronunciation
 
n.

A vitamin precursor that the body converts to its active form through normal metabolic processes. Carotene, for example, is a provitamin of vitamin A.


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Food and Nutrition: provitamin
 

A substance that is converted into a vitamin, such as 7-dehydrocholesterol, which is converted into vitamin D, or those carotenes that can be converted to vitamin A.

 
Dental Dictionary: provitamin
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(prō-vī′tə-min)
n

Any substance in food that may be transformed into a vitamin within the body; a potential vitamin.

 

An inactive precursor of a vitamin; e.g. the yellow-orange carotenes are provitamins of vitamin A.

 
Veterinary Dictionary: provitamin
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A substance, e.g. ergosterol, from which the animal organism can form a vitamin.

 
Wikipedia: Provitamin
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A provitamin is a substance that can be converted into a vitamin by animal tissues. Similar to a prodrug that is metabolized into a drug.

List of provitamins

Vitamin Provitamin(s)
A Carotene, cryptoxanthin
B5 Panthenol
D2 Ergosterol
D3 7-Dehydrocholesterol
E Tocopheryl acetate

See also


 
 
Learn More
carotenase
carotenoids
dehydrocholesterol (biochemistry)

What is the difference between provitamin a in green bell peppers and provitamin a in red bell peppers? Read answer...

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The provitamin form of vitamin A found in plant pigments is known as?

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Food and Nutrition. A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2005 by A. E. Bender and D. A. Bender. All rights reserved.  Read more
Dental Dictionary. Mosby's Dental Dictionary. Copyright © 2004 by Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Sports Science and Medicine. The Oxford Dictionary of Sports Science & Medicine. Copyright © Michael Kent 1998, 2006, 2007. All rights reserved.  Read more
Veterinary Dictionary. Saunders Comprehensive Veterinary Dictionary 3rd Edition. Copyright © 2007 by D.C. Blood, V.P. Studdert and C.C. Gay, Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Provitamin" Read more