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

In 1883, with rather grim determination, the German embryologist August Weismann had performed an experiment that directly attacked Darwin's gemmule theory of heredity.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

S. lacustris is an extremely variable species, varying in the size, proportions and shape of its spicules, in its external form and in the size and structure of the gemmule.

From Freshwater Sponges, Hydroids & Polyzoa by Annandale, Nelson

B. Microscleres of the gemmule as in Ephydatia; microscleres of the parenchyma consisting of numerous shafts meeting in different planes in a central nodule Dosilia, p.

From Freshwater Sponges, Hydroids & Polyzoa by Annandale, Nelson

Some zoologists are therefore of the opinion that the development of the gemmule is an instance of parthenogenesis—that is to say of an organism arising from an egg that has not been fertilized.

From Freshwater Sponges, Hydroids & Polyzoa by Annandale, Nelson

Evans, R., "A description of Ephydatia blembingia, with an account of the formation and structure of the gemmule," Q. J. Micr.

From Freshwater Sponges, Hydroids & Polyzoa by Annandale, Nelson