Agar-agar
Definition
A mucilaginous polysaccharide product extracted from the cell wall of certain red marine algae (especially from the genera Gelidium and Gracilaria), commercialized as a powder, flakes, or gelatinous strips insoluble in cold water but soluble in hot water. Structurally, it gels upon cooling to form a rigid, thermally stable three-dimensional network, widely used in microbiology as a support for bacterial cultures, in confectionery as a plant-based substitute for animal gelatin (under code E406), and in pharmaceutical technology.
Bilingual Equivalents
- Agar-agar
- Gelose
Grammatical & Source Details
| Inflection Type | Invariable neuter noun, singular only, maintaining its hyphenated structural form. |
| Formation | Direct loanword via reduplication from Malay ('agar' meaning jelly/algae), integrated into international scientific vocabulary. |
| Spelling / Pronunciation | [ˌɑː.ɡɑːr.ˈɑː.ɡɑːr] |
| Source | Encyclopedia of Food Science and Biochemical Compounds |
Contextual Usage Examples
RO: Cofetarul a adăugat trei grame de agar-agar în compoziția fierbinte pentru a obține o budincă vegetală perfect stabilă.
EN: The confectioner added three grams of agar-agar to the hot mixture to obtain a perfectly stable plant-based pudding.
RO: În laboratoarele de cercetare, pulberea pură de agar-agar este sterilizată în autoclav înainte de a fi turnată în cutii Petri.
EN: In research laboratories, pure agar-agar powder is sterilized in an autoclave before being poured into Petri dishes.
RO: Structura moleculară rigidă pe care o dezvoltă acest agar-agar împiedică bacteriile să lichefieze mediul în timpul incubării.
EN: The rigid molecular structure developed by this agar-agar prevents bacteria from liquefying the medium during incubation.
Idioms & Phrases
Gel structural de agar-agar / Agar-agar structural gel
RO: Rețea hidrocoloidală formată prin legături de hidrogen ce captează moleculele de apă la temperaturi sub patruzeci de grade.
EN: A hydrocolloid network formed by hydrogen bonds that traps water molecules at temperatures below forty degrees.
Soluție apoasă de agar-agar / Agar-agar aqueous solution
RO: Lichid vâscos obținut prin fierberea algelor sau a prafului, caracaterizat prin fluiditate ridicată la temperaturi mari.
EN: A viscous liquid obtained by boiling algae or powder, characterized by high fluidity at high temperatures.
Extract purificat de agar-agar / Purified agar-agar extract
RO: Substanță rafinată industrial din care au fost eliminate sărurile minerale și proteinele pentru a nu perturba analizele chimice.
EN: An industrially refined substance from which mineral salts and proteins have been eliminated so as not to disrupt chemical analyses.
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