ground substance

American  

noun

Biology.

1. Also called matrix.  the homogeneous substance in which the fibers and cells of connective tissue are embedded.

2. Also called hyaloplasm.  the clear portion of the cell cytoplasm; cytosol.

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ground substance Scientific  

1. The intercellular material in which the cells and fibers of connective tissue are embedded, composed largely of glycosaminoglycans, metabolites, water, and ions.

2. The clear, fluid portion of cytoplasm as distinguished from the organelles and other cell components.

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Etymology

Origin of ground substance

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

The major component of the matrix is a ground substance often crisscrossed by protein fibers.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

This ground substance is usually a fluid, but it can also be mineralized and solid, as in bones.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Secreted by fibroblasts, ground substance is made of polysaccharides, specifically hyaluronic acid, and proteins.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

The enzyme injected into the disc breaks down the ground substance, enabling it and the water to escape and be absorbed by the body.

From Time Magazine Archive

GELATIN, or Gelatine, the substance which passes into solution when “collagen,” the ground substance of bone, cartilage and white fibrous tissue, is treated with boiling water 555 or dilute acids.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 5 "Gassendi, Pierre" to "Geocentric" by Various