Edit page | Page history | Printable version

yellow wax

A yellowish, solid, brittle substance prepared from the honeycomb of the bee, apis mellifera; the chief constituent is myricin (myricyl palmitate); others are cerotic acid (cerin), melissic acid, heptacosane, and hentriacontane; used in the preparation of ointments, cerates, plasters, and suppositories.