ˈkīt ə n noun
( -s )
Etymology: French chitine, from Greek chitōn, chiton, tunic + French -ine -in
: a white or colorless amorphous horny substance that forms part of the hard outer integument of insects, crustaceans, and some other invertebrates and occurs also in fungi, being a polysaccharide structurally similar to cellulose except that the repeating unit is derived from acetylglucosamine instead of glucose