The Collaborative International Dictionary
Alloxan \Al*lox"an\, n. [Allantoin + oxalic, as containing the elements of allantion and oxalic acid.] (Chem.) An oxidation product of uric acid. It is of a pale reddish color, readily soluble in water or alcohol.
Wiktionary
n. (context biochemistry English) An oxidation product of uric acid, ''2,4,5,6(1H,3H)-pyrimidinetetrone'', capable of inducing diabetes by destroying pancreatic tissue
Wikipedia
Alloxan, sometimes referred to as alloxan hydrate, refers to the organic compound with the formula OC(N(H)CO)C(OH). It is classified as a derivative of pyrimidine. The anhydrous derivative (OC(N(H)CO)CO is also known as well as a dimeric derivative. These are some of the earliest known organic compounds. They also exhibit a variety of biological activities.
Usage examples of "alloxan".
I almost blush when I think of myself as describing the eight several facets on two slender processes of the palate bone, or the seven little twigs that branch off from the minute tympanic nerve, and I wonder whether my excellent colleague feels in the same way when he pictures himself as giving the constitution of neurin, which as he and I know very well is that of the hydrate of trimethyle-oxethyle-ammonium, or the formula for the production of alloxan, which, though none but the Professors and older students can be expected to remember it, is C10 H4 N4 O6+ 2HO, NO5}=C8 H4 N2 O10+2CO2+N2+NH4 O, NO5.
Oh, you have forgotten the dose of the sulphate of zinc, but you remember the formula for the production of alloxan!