ˈfäsfəˌtās, -āz noun
( -s )
Etymology: International Scientific Vocabulary phosphate + -ase
: any of a large group of widely occurring enzymes that accelerate the hydrolysis and synthesis of organic esters of phosphoric acid and the transfer of phosphate groups to other compounds and that are active (1) in alkaline media in many instances (as the phosphomonoesterases from blood plasma, milk, intestinal mucosa, or bone) and (2) in acid media in other instances (as the phosphomonoesterase from the prostate gland) — called respectively (1) alkaline phosphatase, (2) acid phosphatase ; compare pyrophosphatase
phosphatases play an important role in bone formation, muscle metabolism, lactation, and alcoholic fermentation — Henry Tauber