stevioside Chem.
(ˈstiːvɪəʊsaɪd)
[ad. F. stévioside (Bridel & Lavieille 1931, in Jrnl. de Pharm. et de Chim. XIV. 105), f. mod.L. Stevi-a, f. the name of P. J. Esteve (d. 1566), Spanish botanist + -ia1: see -oside.]
A glycoside, C38H60O18, present in the leaves of a Paraguayan herb (Stevia rebaudiana) and comparable in sweetness to saccharin.
| 1931 Chem. Abstr. XXV. 4553 Dieterich named the principle eupatirin, which B[ridel] and R. [Lavieille] changed to stevioside. 1968 Times 3 Dec. 10/8 The weed, known to botanists as Stevia rebaudiana.., grows up to 1½ ft. high. Its leaves have a surprisingly sweet taste, the active principle being known as stevioside. 1978 Nature 9 Feb. 495/1 Stevioside, a triterpene glycoside, which is readily extracted from the leaves of S. rebaudiana, is being produced on a commercial scale in Japan... Stevioside, which is approximately 300 times sweeter than sucrose, is not a permitted food additive elsewhere. |