an early form of an animal embryo that develops from a morula, consisting of a sphere of cells with a central cavity
Also called: blastosphere
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
blas•tu•la
(blas′chə lə),USA pronunciation n., pl. -las, -lae (-lē′).USA pronunciation [Embryol.]
blas′tu•lar, adj.
blas•tu•la•tion
(blas′chə lā′shən),USA pronunciation n.
- Developmental Biologythe early developmental stage of an animal, following the morula stage and consisting of a single, spherical layer of cells enclosing a hollow, central cavity. Cf. blastocyst.
- Greek blast(ós) bud, sprout + Neo-Latin -ula -ule
- Neo-Latin
- 1885–90;
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'blastula' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
blastocoel
- blastocyst
- blastoderm
- blastodisk
- blastosphere
- cleavage
- gastrula
- gastrulation
- invagination
- monoblastic
- morula