nerve cord

noun

1

: the pair of closely united ventral longitudinal nerves with their segmental ganglia that is characteristic of many elongate invertebrates (such as earthworms)

2

: the dorsal tubular cord of nervous tissue above the notochord of a chordate that comprises or develops into the central nervous system

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Magnification of ventral nerve cord of Chengjiangocaris kunmingensis. —K. N. Smith, Discover Magazine, 1 Mar. 2016

Each of the five specimens had a ventral nerve cord, the invertebrate version of a spinal cord. —K. N. Smith, Discover Magazine, 1 Mar. 2016

The nerve cord is a chain of nerve cell clusters called ganglia, linked by the long arms of neurites. —K. N. Smith, Discover Magazine, 1 Mar. 2016

The Stanleycaris nerve cord is completely non ganglionated. —Jason P. Dinh, Discover Magazine, 8 July 2022

Our closest non-vertebrate relatives re-established a nerve cord (on the wrong side of the body, naturally) but couldn't be bothered with niceties like a skeleton. —John Timmer, Ars Technica, 7 July 2022

So, the presence of cartilage suggests that, even at this early stage of their evolution, vertebrates probably had a distinct nerve cord that produced a neural crest—something that our close relatives like the amphioxus doesn't have. —John Timmer, Ars Technica, 7 July 2022

The critters can’t control each leg individually (imagine that traffic jam), but instead use a single nerve cord that travels the length of their body to coordinate the movement. —Haley Weiss, The Atlantic, 16 Dec. 2021

Yet retinoic acid signaling was thought to be essential for making a brain, nerve cord and other vital features. —Quanta Magazine, 1 Sep. 2020

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Word History

First Known Use

1877, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

nerve cord

noun

1

: a pair of closely united nerves that run along the inside of the body on the lower side of many long-bodied invertebrates (as earthworms and insects)

2

: a tube-shaped cord of nervous tissue in the back or upper side of a chordate above the notochord that makes up or develops into the central nervous system

Medical Definition

nerve cord

noun

: the dorsal tubular cord of nervous tissue above the notochord of a chordate that in vertebrates includes or develops an anterior enlargement comprising the brain and a more posterior part comprising the spinal cord with the two together making up the central nervous system