phosphate (redirected from phosphate rock)

phosphate /phos·phate/ (fos´fāt) any salt or ester of phosphoric acid.phosphat´ic

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phos·phate (fsft)

n.

A salt or ester of phosphoric acid.

adj.

Containing the trivalent radical PO₄.

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Phosphate

An organic compound necessary for mineralization of bone and other key cellular processes.

Mentioned in: Hyperparathyroidism

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phosphate (PO₄^3-)

[fos′fāt]

1 an anion of phosphoric acid.

2 a salt of phosphoric acid. Phosphates are extremely important in living cells, particularly in the storage and use of energy and the transmission of genetic information within a cell and from one cell to another. See also adenosine diphosphate, adenosine triphosphate, phosphorus.

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phosphate

any salt or ester of phosphoric acid.

1. Phosphates are widely distributed in the body, the largest amounts being in the bones and teeth. They are continually excreted in the urine and feces, and must be replaced in the diet. Inorganic phosphates function as buffer salts to maintain the acid-base balance in blood, saliva, urine and other body fluids. The principal phosphates in this buffer system are monosodium and disodium phosphate. Organic phosphates, in particular adenosine triphosphate (ATP), are used to store the chemical bond energy released during the oxidation of compounds such as glycogen or fatty acids, which may later be expended in muscle contraction. This is thought to occur through the hydrolysis of the so-called high-energy phosphate bond present in ATP, phosphocreatine and certain other body compounds. See also hypophosphatemia, hyperphosphatemia.

2. used extensively in agricultural industry as fertilizers and organic compounds as cleaning agents.

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phosphate binders

usually aluminum carbonate or hydroxide preparations, used to bind phosphates and limit their absorption from the intestine. Used in the treatment of the hyperphosphatemia of renal failure.

phosphate buffer

important phosphate-containing buffers.

phosphate buffered saline

a special phosphate buffered saline used in tissue cultures and for the storage and transport of bovine embryos. Abbreviated PBS.

phosphate calculi

see struvite urolith.

dietary phosphate

supplementation of the diet with phosphate in some form is a very common practice in farm animals. Materials used include rock phosphate (defluorination may be necessary), sodium dihydrogen phosphate produced by the agricultural chemical industry, calcium triphosphate and bone meal or flour.

inorganic phosphate

any salt of phosphoric acid.

phosphate retention

a phenomenon resulting from reduced glomerular filtration; contributes to a chronic hypocalcemic state.

phosphate ridge

see mineralization front.

phosphate rock

see rock phosphate.

phosphate yielding endonucleases

a class of ribonuclease involved in the usually fairly rapid turnover of RNA in the cell that degrades RNA by cleavage of the phosphodiester bonds within the molecule.