ecdysone

[ek-duh-zohn, -sohn]

noun

1. an insect hormone that stimulates metamorphosis.

ecdysone

/ ɛkˈdaɪˌsəʊn /

noun

1. a hormone secreted by the prothoracic gland of insects that controls ecdysis and stimulates metamorphosis

Word History and Origins

Origin of ecdysone¹

First recorded in 1955–60; ecdys(is) + -one

Word History and Origins

Origin of ecdysone¹

C20: from German ecdyson, from Greek ekdusis; see _ecdysis

Example Sentences

In the larval stage, that gland receives lots of nutritional information that helps it decide how to regulate ecdysone production.

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They hypothesized that it had something to do with a steroid hormone involved in fruit fly growth called ecdysone, which is similar to estrogen and testosterone in humans.

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Instead, a "stop growing" switch is triggered by the gland that makes ecdysone.

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But once ecdysone reaches a certain level, the gland no longer needs that nutritional information to make decisions and starts regulating itself.

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They knew ecdysone played a large part in the silkworm's life cycle, and when they discovered that it was remarkably similar to human sex hormones, they were fascinated.

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