Tubular structures, 150 nm by 300 to 500 nm, with a wall having 9 triple microtubules, usually seen as paired organelles lying in the cytocentrum; centrioles may be multiple and numerous in some cells, such as the giant cells of bone marrow. [G. kentron, a point, center]
- distal c. the c. in the developing spermatozoon from which the flagellum develops. SYN: posterior c..
- proximal c. the c. that lies in a depression in the wall of the posterior portion of the nucleus of the developing spermatozoon. SYN: anterior c..
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cen·tri·ole 'sen-trē-.ōl n one of a pair of cellular organelles that occur esp. in animals, are adjacent to the nucleus, function in the formation of the spindle apparatus during cell division, and consist of a cylinder with nine microtubules arranged peripherally in a circle
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n.
a small particle found in the cytoplasm of cells, near the nucleus. Centrioles are involved in the formation of the spindle and aster during cell division. During interphase there are usually two centrioles in the centrosome; when cell division occurs these separate and move to opposite sides of the nucleus, and the spindle is formed between them.
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cen·tri·ole (senґtre-ōl) either of the two cylindrical organelles located in the centrosome and containing nine triplets of microtubules arrayed around their edges; during cell division the centrioles are duplicated, with the resulting pairs migrating to opposite poles of the cell, where they serve to organize the spindles. They are capable of independent replication and of migrating to form basal bodies.Medical dictionary. 2011.