from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Indole \In"dole\, Indol \In"dol\([i^]n"d[=o]l), n. [Indigo + -ol
of phenol.] (Chem., Physiol. Chem.)
A white, crystalline substance, {C8H7N}, obtained from blue
indigo, and almost all indigo derivatives, by a process of
reduction; chemically, it is 2,3-benzopyrrole, a bicyclic
heterocyclic compound, having a benzene ring fused to a
pyrrole ring. It is also formed from proteinaceous matter,
together with skatol, by putrefaction, and by fusion with
caustic potash, and is present in human excrement, as well as
in the intestinal canal of some herbivora. It is produced in
rich growth media by the intestinal bacterium {Escherichia
coli}.
[1913 Webster +PJC]