leghaemoglobin, n. Biochem.
(ˌlɛghiːməʊˈgləʊbɪn)
Also (U.S.) leghemoglobin.
[f. legume n. + hæmoglobin n.]
A red pigment in the root nodules of legumes whose haemoglobin-like component enables nitrogen-fixing bacteria to function.
| 1945 A. I. Virtanen et al. in Suomen Kemistilehti B. XVIII. 50 To avoid the long terms as e.g. ‘haemoglobin of the leguminous root nodules’ we have begun to use the terms: leghaemoglobin and legmethaemoglobin. 1974 Nature 6 Sept. 74/2 Leghaemoglobin (Lb), a myoglobin protein, is found in large quantities in the root nodules which result from the symbiotic association between the bacterium Rhizobium and plants of the family Leguminosae. 1984 Holtzman & Novikoff Cells & Organelles (ed. 3) iii. iii. 359 A protein related to hemoglobin (leghemoglobin) is synthesized by the host. |