medaka

[mi-dak-uh]

noun

1. a small Japanese fish, Oryzias latipes, common in rice fields, often kept in aquariums.

Word History and Origins

Origin of medaka¹

1930–35; < Japanese, equivalent to me ( y ) (earlier *mai ) eye + -daka, combining form of taka high

Example Sentences

"That response is completely absent in medaka."

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So University of Utah biologists, led by assistant professor Jamie Gagnon, tackled the problem by comparing two fish species: zebrafish, which can regenerate its heart, and medaka, which cannot.

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Medaka are native to Japan and zebrafish are native to the Ganges River basin.

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For example, medaka lack a certain type of muscle cells that are present in zebrafish.

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For example, far more macrophages, specialized immune cells, migrated into the wound site in zebrafish than in medaka.

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