Benders'dictionary of nutrition and food technology

kuru Or trembling disease; progressive degeneration of centralnervous system cells, associated with cannibalism in Papua-NewGuinea, and believed to be caused by a prion. More or less eradicatedsince ritual cannibalism was abolished.kurut North African, Middle Eastern, East Asian; hard dried ballsof fermented milk or milk curds.kushuk Iraqi; parboiled wheat and turnip allowed to undergolactic acid bacterial fermentation for 4–10 days; liquid used assoup and the solid eaten as porridge or mixed with vegetables.Also an alternative name for kishk.kuzu Starch from the tubers of the kuzu (or kudzu) vine (Puerarialobata or P. thunbergiana) used as a thickening agent inChinese and Japanese cuisine.kwashiorkor See protein–energy malnutrition.kyphosis Excessive outward curvature of the spine, causinghunching of the back. May result from collapse of the vertebraein osteoporosis.L271L- See d, l- and dl-.lac A red colourant (a complex mixture of anthraquinones)obtained from the insect Laccifera lacca (Coccus lacca) found onthe trees Schleichera oleosa, Ziziphus mauritiana and Buteamonosperma, which grow in India and Malaysia. The lac insectsare also the source of shellac.laccase See phenol oxidases.lacquer With reference to canned foods (see canning), a layer ofsynthetic resin is coated onto the tinplate and hardened withheat. The layer of lacquer protects the tin lining from attack byacid fruit juices.lactalbumin One of the proteins of milk. Unlike casein, not precipitatedfrom acid solution; hence, during cheese-making thewhey contains lactalbumin and lactoglobulin. They are precipitatedby heat and a whey cheese can be made in this way.lactase The enzyme (β-galactosidase, EC 3.2.1.23) that hydrolyseslactose to glucose and galactose; present in the brush borderof the intestinal mucosal cells. Deficiency of lactase (alactasia)is common in most ethnic groups after adolescence, leading tolactose intolerance. Fungal lactase is used to produce lactose-freemilk for people suffering from alactasia.See also disaccharide intolerance.lactic acid The acid produced by the anaerobic metabolism ofglucose. Originally discovered in sour milk, it is responsible for