Somatic Cell (Noun)
Meaning
Any of the cells of a plant or animal except the reproductive cells; a cell that does not participate in the production of gametes; "somatic cells are produced from preexisting cells".
Classification
Nouns denoting body parts.
Examples
- Somatic cells are the building blocks of tissues and organs in the human body, and they make up the majority of our cells.
- The somatic cell division process is essential for growth, repair, and maintenance of tissues in multicellular organisms.
- In contrast to reproductive cells, somatic cells do not undergo meiosis and therefore do not produce gametes.
- Somatic cells can differentiate into various cell types, such as muscle cells, nerve cells, and epithelial cells, depending on the tissue they belong to.
- The genetic material in somatic cells is identical to that found in the reproductive cells, but it is not involved in the production of offspring.