glomerulus
[ gloh-mer-yuh-luh s, gluh- ]
/ gloʊˈmɛr yə ləs, glə- /
noun, plural glo·mer·u·li [gloh-mer-yuh-lahy, gluh-] /gloʊˈmɛr yəˌlaɪ, glə-/. Anatomy.
a compact cluster of capillaries.
Also called Malpighian tuft.
a tuft of convoluted capillaries in the nephron of a kidney, functioning to remove certain substances from the blood before it flows into the convoluted tubule.
Compare
Bowman's capsule,
Malpighian corpuscle.
Origin of glomerulus
OTHER WORDS FROM glomerulus
glo·mer·u·lar, adjectiveWords nearby glomerulus
Example sentences from the Web for glomerulus
British Dictionary definitions for glomerulus
glomerulus
/ (ɡlɒˈmɛrʊləs) /
noun plural -li (-ˌlaɪ)
a knot of blood vessels in the kidney projecting into the capsular end of a urine-secreting tubule
any cluster or coil of blood vessels, nerve fibres, etc, in the body
Derived forms of glomerulus
glomerular, adjectiveWord Origin for glomerulus
C18: from New Latin, diminutive of
glomus ball
Medical definitions for glomerulus
glomerulus
[ glō-mĕr′yə-ləs ]
n. pl. glo•mer•u•li (-lī′)
A small cluster or intertwined mass.
A tuft of capillaries situated within a Bowman's capsule at the end of a renal tubule in the vertebrate kidney that filters waste products from the blood and thus initiates urine formation.
The twisted secretory portion of a sweat gland.
A nerve ending consisting of a cluster of dendritic ramifications and axon terminals surrounded by a glial sheath.
Scientific definitions for glomerulus
glomerulus
[ glō-mĕr′yə-ləs ]
Plural glomeruli (glō-mĕr′yə-lī′)
A knot of highly permeable capillaries located within the Bowman's capsule of a nephron. Waste products are filtered from the blood in the glomerulus, initiating the process of urine formation.