A complex sugar (polysaccharide) made by bacteria, used in medicine as a blood plasma substitute and in food production.
From 'dextro-' (right-turning, referring to how it rotates polarized light) plus '-an' (suffix for polysaccharides). Named in the 1940s when scientists isolated it from bacteria cultures.
Dextran saved countless lives in hospitals during emergencies because it mimics blood plasma and can be stored at room temperature for years—meanwhile real plasma expires within weeks, making dextran one of chemistry's genuinely practical life-savers.
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