Barr body
[bahr]
- a condensed, inactivated X chromosome present in most female mammals in the nuclei of all cells except the germ cells: used, as in sports competitions, to verify that an individual is genetically female.
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Origin of Barr body
1960–65; after Murray L. Barr (born 1908), Canadian physician
Also called sex chromatin.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Barr body
(bär)- The condensed, inactive, single X-chromosome found in the nuclei of somatic cells of most female mammals and whose presence is the basis of sex determination tests that are performed, for example, on athletes.sex chromatin
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.