1. The primordial cellular mass (precursor) from which an organ or part is formed. 2. A cluster of cells competent to initiate the regeneration of a damaged or ablated structure. [G. a sprout]
- metanephric b. SYN: metanephric cap.
- nephric b. the extension of nephrogenic cord tissue, caudal to the mesonephros, into which the ureteric buds grow to initiate development of the definitive mammalian kidney. SYN: nephroblastema.
* * *
blas·te·ma bla-'stē-mə n, pl -mas also -ma·ta -mət-ə a mass of living substance capable of growth and differentiation
* * *
n.
any zone of embryonic tissue that is still differentiating and growing into a particular organ. The term is usually applied to the tissue that develops into the kidneys and gonads.
* * *
blas·te·ma (blas-teґmə) [Gr. blastēma shoot] 1. in species with asexual reproduction, a group of cells that give rise to a new individual. 2. in other species, a group of cells with little or no differentiation that gives rise to an organ or part in either normal development or regeneration. blastemic adjMedical dictionary. 2011.