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totipotent

[toh-tip-uh-tuh nt]
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adjective Biology.
  1. (of a cell or part) having the potential for developing in various specialized ways in response to external or internal stimuli.
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Origin of totipotent

First recorded in 1895–1900; toti- + potent1
Related formsto·tip·o·ten·cy, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for totipotency

totipotent

adjective
  1. (of an animal cell) capable of differentiation and so forming a new individual, tissue, organ, etc
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Derived Formstotipotency, noun

Word Origin

C20: from Latin tōtus entire + potent 1
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

Word Origin and History for totipotency

totipotent

adj.

1896, from Latin toti-, comb. form of totus "whole" (see total (adj.)) + potent. Perhaps immediately from German totipotent, which is attested by 1893. Related: Totipotency.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
totipotency in Medicine

totipotency

(tō-tĭp′ə-tən-sē, tō′tĭ-pōt′n-sē)
n.
  1. The ability of a cell, such as an egg, to give rise to unlike cells and to develop into or generate a new organism or part.
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Related formsto•tip′o•tent adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
totipotency in Culture

totipotency

The ability of cells such as an embryonic stem cell to differentiate into any type of body cell. Plant cells are also totipotent, which helps to explain why a graft of a plant can generate a whole new individual out of just a small branch cutting.

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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.