somatic cell

American  

noun

Cell Biology.

1. one of the cells that take part in the formation of the body, becoming differentiated into the various tissues, organs, etc.

2. any cell other than a germ cell.

---

somatic cell British  

noun

1. any of the cells of a plant or animal except the reproductive cells Compare germ cell

---

Etymology

Origin of somatic cell

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

somatic cell

Prenatal genome editing sits within the broader spectrum of human genome editing, which ranges from germline, where the changes are heritable, to somatic cell, where the patient’s descendants won’t inherit the changes.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2024

Unlike somatic cell division, which duplicates and divides the genome identically, meiosis creates genetically diverse reproductive cells through a mechanism known as crossover.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 8, 2024

Reproductive cloning of animals uses a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer.

From Reuters ● May 25, 2023

Figure 16.1 The genetic content of each somatic cell in an organism is the same, but not all genes are expressed in every cell.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

The germ-plasm contains representatives of the whole army; a somatic cell only representatives of one special arm of a special training.

From The Whence and the Whither of Man A Brief History of His Origin and Development through Conformity to Environment; Being the Morse Lectures of 1895 by Tyler, John Mason