developmental biology

American  

noun

1. the branch of biology dealing with the processes of growth and change that transform an organism from a fertilized egg or asexual reproductive unit, as a spore or gemmule, to an adult.

---

developmental biology Cultural  

1. The study of the processes by which an organism develops from a zygote to its full structure. This field includes the study of cellular differentiation as well as body structure development. (See also embryology.)

---

Etymology

Origin of developmental biology

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

These findings could have wide ranging significance for developmental biology and medical research.

From Science Daily • Mar. 5, 2026

Irving Weissman, MD, professor of pathology and of developmental biology, and Kim Hasenkrug, PhD, the chief of Rocky Mountain Laboratories' Retroviral Immunology Section, are the senior authors of the research.

From Science Daily • Mar. 27, 2024

What are some of the big remaining open questions in the field of developmental biology?

From Scientific American • Nov. 9, 2023

Scientists have been culturing animal cells in artificial environments since the 1950s, initially focusing on studying developmental biology and cancer.

From Salon • Jun. 28, 2023

If that seems surprising, it is perhaps because we have been so wedded to the blueprint picture of developmental biology.

From Scientific American • May 31, 2023