blastula

noun

blas·tu·la | \ ˈblas-chə-lə

plural blastulas or blastulae\ ˈblas-chə-ˌlē

Definition of blastula

: an early metazoan embryo typically having the form of a hollow fluid-filled rounded cavity bounded by a single layer of cells — compare gastrula, morula

History and Etymology for blastula

borrowed from New Latin (in a German context), from Greek blastós "shoot, bud, embryo" + New Latin -ula (as in gastrula, planula) — more at -blast

Note: Term apparently introduced by the Russian zoologist and embryologist Vladimir Vladimirovič Zalenskij ("W. Salensky," 1847-1918) in "Bemerkungen über Haeckel's Gastraea-Theorie," Archiv für Naturgeschichte, 40. Jahrgang, 1. Band (1874), p. 162.

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The first known use of blastula was in 1875

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blastula

noun

blas·tu·la | \ ˈblas-chə-lə

plural -las or blastulae\ -ˌlē

Medical Definition of blastula

: an early metazoan embryo typically having the form of a hollow fluid-filled rounded cavity bounded by a single layer of cells — compare gastrula, morula

Other Words from blastula

blastular \ -lər

\ adjective

blastulation \ ˌblas-chə-ˈlā-shən

\ noun