polar body

American  

noun

Cell Biology.

1. one of the minute cells arising from the unequal meiotic divisions of the ovum at or near the time of fertilization.

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polar body British  

noun

1. physiol a tiny cell containing little cytoplasm that is produced with the ovum during oogenesis when the oocyte undergoes meiosis

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polar body Scientific  

1. One of the small cells that are produced during the development of an oocyte and ultimately degenerate. A polar body contains one of the nuclei derived from the first or second meiotic division but little or no cytoplasm.

2. See Note at oogenesis

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Etymology

Origin of polar body

First recorded in 1885–90