pluripotent

American

[ploor-uh-poht-nt] / ˌplʊər əˈpoʊt nt /

adjective

Biology.

(of a cell) capable of developing into any type of cell or tissue except those that form a placenta or embryo.

pluripotent stem cells.

pluripotent British

/ ˌplʊrɪˈpəʊtənt /

adjective

biology capable of differentiating into different types of body cell

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

pluripotency

noun

Etymology

Origin of pluripotent

First recorded in 1915–20; from Latin plūr- (stem of plūs “plus”) + English potent ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

All protocols used in this work were approved by the Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research Oversight Committee at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

From Science Daily • Feb. 26, 2024

Pluripotent stem cells in embryos can make any kind of cell a body needs, while adult stem cells are limited to producing particular types.

From Science Daily • Dec. 19, 2023

Pluripotent stem cells, which can become any cell of the body, come in different varieties.

From Scientific American • Nov. 10, 2023

Pluripotent stem cells multiply in cultures kept isolated from breathing, bleeding animals.

From Slate • Dec. 24, 2022

Pluripotent cells interest doctors and biologists, who hope to use them to investigate diseases, test drugs and, eventually, regrow patients’ damaged body parts.

From Economist • Jun. 12, 2014

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023