tectum

[tek-tuhm]

noun

Anatomy, Zoology.

plural

tectums, tecta 

1. a rooflike structure.

Other Word Forms

• tectal adjective
• tectorial adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tectum¹

1900–05; < New Latin, Latin tēctum roof, special use of neuter of tēctus, past participle of tegere to cover; protect

Example Sentences

And in the tectum, a brain region that processes images from the optic nerve, the neurons of salamanders were often strewn chaotically about—a trait seen in embryonic or larval brains—whereas in frogs, the neurons were nicely layered.

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“It still has so many of the original parts that make it a true mid-century modern gem. I was absolutely floored by the untouched redwood ceilings, the book-matched cherry kitchen cabinets, the expansive open windows, the tectum ceilings and the slate stairway,” Busse said.

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The researchers also recorded activity from the ocular tectum, a brain area involved in basic visual processing in owls and many other vertebrates.

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The pit membrane is innervated by about seven thousand sensory fibers from the snake’s trigeminal ganglion that then carry information encoding the rattlesnake’s infrared map of the world to a part of the brain called the optic tectum, where it is combined with visual information in a fashion that aligns the visual and infrared maps.

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Transgenic zebrafish were bred to express this protein in a brain region called the optic tectum, which controls the movement of the eye when the animal sees something move in its environment.

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