Cells

cell  (sl) n. 1. A narrow confining room, as in a prison or convent. 2. A small enclosed cavity or space, such as a compartment in a honeycomb or within a plant ovary or an area bordered by veins in an insect's wing. 3. Biology The smallest structural unit of an organism that is capable of independent functioning, consisting of one or more nuclei, cytoplasm, and various organelles, all surrounded by a semipermeable cell membrane. 4. Architecture See web. 5. The smallest organizational unit of a centralized group or movement, especially of a political party of Leninist structure. 6. Electricity a. A single unit for electrolysis or conversion of chemical into electric energy, usually consisting of a container with electrodes and an electrolyte; a battery. Also called electrochemical cell. b. A single unit that converts radiant energy into electric energy: a solar cell. 7. A fuel cell. 8. Computer Science A basic unit of storage in a computer memory that can hold one unit of information, such as a character or word. 9. A geographic area or zone surrounding a transmitter in a cellular telephone system. 10. A storm cell. 11. A small humble abode, such as a hermit's cave or hut. 12. A small religious house dependent on a larger one, such as a priory within an abbey. 13. A box or other unit on a spreadsheet or similar array at the intersection of a column and a row. v. celled, cell·ing, cells v.tr. To store in a honeycomb. v.intr. To live in or share a prison cell. [Middle English celle, from Old English cell and from Old French, both from Latin cella, chamber; see kel-1 in Indo-European roots.]

cell top: plant cell bottom: animal cell

---

Cells

See also biology.

auxesis

growth, especially owing to an increase in cell size. Cf. merisis. — auxetic, adj.

basophile

a cell or tissue that stains easily. — basophilic, basophilous, adj.

chromatolysis

the breakdown of the protoplasm that contains the genes in the cell nucleus.

cytochemistry

the branch of cytology that deals with the chemistry of living cells. — cytochemical, adj.

cytology

the branch of biology that studies the structure, function, multiplication, and life history of cells. — cytologist, n. — cytologie, cytological, adj.

cytolysis

the degeneration of cells. — cytolytic, adj.

cytoplasm

the protoplasm of a cell, not including the nucleus. — cytoplasmic, adj.

cytotechnology

the study of human cells, especially to detect signs of cancer. — cytotechnologist, n. — cytotechnologic, adj.

ectoplasm

the outer part of the cytoplasm of a cell. Cf. endoplasm. — ectoplasmic, adj.

embryogeny

the formation and growth of an embryo. — embryogenic, — embryogenetic, adj.

endoplasm

the inner part of the cytoplasm of a cell. Cf. ectoplasm. — endoplasmic, adj.

epigenesis

the formation of a cell as a new product and not as the result of development from some existing cell. — epigenetic, adj.

karyology

a branch of cytology dealing with the structure of cell nuclei, especially chromosomes. — karyologic, karyological, adj.

karyoplasm

the substance forming the nucleus of a cell. — karyoplasmic, karyoplasmatic, adj.

karyotype

the aggregate of morphological characteristics of the chromosomes in a cell. — karyotypic, karyotypical, adj.

lysis

the destruction of cells by the action of certain lysins. See also health. — lytic, adj.

merisis

any form of growth, especially as a product of cell division. Cf. auxesis.

mitosis

the normal process of cell division. — mitotic, adj.

monad

any simple, single-cell organism. — monadic, monadical, monadal, adj.

neutrophile

a cell or tissue that accepts a stain from a neutral solution. — neutrophilous, adj.

osmosis

the process by which fluids pass through a semipermeable membrane into a solution of lower concentration to equalize the concentration on both sides of the membrane. — osmotic, adj.

phagocytosis

the action of phagocytes in ingesting and destroying cells.

trophoplasm

the form of protoplasm that constitutes the nutritive element of a cell. — trophoplasmic, trophoplasmatic, adj.

trophotropism

the movement of cells in relation to food or nutritive matter. — trophotropic, adj.