chromatin

American

[kroh-muh-tin] / ˈkroʊ mə tɪn /

noun

Cell Biology.

the readily stainable substance of a cell nucleus, consisting of DNA, RNA, and various proteins, that forms chromosomes during cell division.

chromatin British

/ ˈkrəʊmətɪn /

noun

cytology the part of the nucleus that consists of DNA and proteins, forms the chromosomes, and stains with basic dyes See also euchromatin heterochromatin

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

chromatin Scientific

/ krō′mə-tĭn /

The substance distributed in the nucleus of a cell that condenses to form chromosomes during cell division. It consists mainly of DNA and proteins called histones.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Etymology

Origin of chromatin

First recorded in 1880–85; chromat- + -in ²

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Vocabulary lists containing chromatin

Cell Biology - Middle School

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Genetics - High School

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Example Sentences

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The paper, titled "Single-nucleus chromatin accessibility profiling identifies cell types and functional variants contributing to major depression" by Anjali Chawla and Gustavo Turecki et al., was published in Nature Genetics.

From Science Daily • Apr. 23, 2026

Notably, these improvements occurred without major changes in gene expression or chromatin accessibility.

From Science Daily • Apr. 16, 2026

When MOF is removed, BRD2 can no longer stay attached to chromatin, while other BET proteins remain largely unaffected.

From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2026

Many of these enzymes are typically known for producing energy in mitochondria, yet researchers discovered them sitting on chromatin inside the cell nucleus.

From Science Daily • Mar. 9, 2026

The allegiances shifted: the handmaiden of chromatin was suddenly its queen.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023