gemmule

American  

[jem-yool] / ˈdʒɛm yul /

noun

1. Botany. gemma.

2. Zoology. an asexually produced mass of cells that is capable of developing into an animal, as a freshwater sponge.

3. Evolution. one of the hypothetical living units conceived by Darwin in the theory of pangenesis as the bearers of the hereditary attributes.

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gemmule British  

/ ˈdʒɛmjuːl /

noun

1. zoology a cell or mass of cells produced asexually by sponges and developing into a new individual; bud

2. botany a small gemma

3. a small hereditary particle postulated by Darwin in his theory of pangenesis

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gemmule Scientific  

/ jĕm′yo̅o̅l /

1. A small gemma or similar structure, especially a reproductive structure in some sponges that remains dormant through the winter and later develops into a new individual.

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Etymology

Origin of gemmule

1835–45; < French < Latin gemmula. See gemma, -ule

Example Sentences

Gemmules secreted by the hand carried the instructions to manufacture a new hand; gemmules dispersed by the ear transmitted the code to build a new ear.

From Literature

No foraminal tubule; its place sometimes taken by an open, bowl-shaped chitinous structure the base of which is in continuity with the inner chitinous coat of the gemmule.

From Project Gutenberg

If the whole ovum, about 1⁄150 in diameter, were all gemmules, the number would be sufficient to last, at this rate, one per second for 5,600 years!

From Project Gutenberg

These granules for the sake of distinctness may be called cell-gemmules, or, as the cellular theory is not fully established, simply gemmules.

From Project Gutenberg

Combination in various degrees between these gemmules is supposed to influence their appearance or non-appearance in the offspring at various stages.

From Project Gutenberg