mesentery

American  

[mes-uhn-ter-ee, mez-] / ˈmɛs ənˌtɛr i, ˈmɛz- /

noun

Anatomy.

mesenteries plural

1. an organ that, as a double fold of peritoneum, loops around the pancreas and the intestines, holding them securely to the abdominal wall.

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mesentery British  

/ ˈmɛsəntərɪ, ˈmɛz- /

noun

1. the double layer of peritoneum that is attached to the back wall of the abdominal cavity and supports most of the small intestine

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• postmesenteric
  adjective
• intermesenteric
  adjective
• mesenteric
  adjective

Inflected Forms

noun

• mesenteries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of mesentery

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English , from New Latin mesenterium, from Greek mesentérion (equivalent to mes- mes- + énteron enteron + Greek -ion noun suffix); see -ium ( def. )

Example Sentences

Each mesentery consists of one ectodermal and one endodermal cell layer with the mesoglea sandwiched in between.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The jejunum and ileum are tethered to the posterior abdominal wall by the mesentery.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

The mesoappendix, the mesentery of the appendix, tethers it to the mesentery of the ileum.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Into the ventral mesentery the liver grows as diverticula from the duodenum, so that some of the mesentery remains as the falciform ligament of the liver and some as the lesser omentum.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 6 "Cockaigne" to "Columbus, Christopher" by Various

The mesentery is a membrane beginning loosely on the loins, and thence extending to all the intestines; which it preserves from twisting by their peristaltic motion.

From Popular Lectures on Zoonomia Or The Laws of Animal Life, in Health and Disease by Garnett, Thomas