English noun: apoptosis | |||
1. | apoptosis (phenomenon) a type of cell death in which the cell uses specialized cellular machinery to kill itself; a cell suicide mechanism that enables metazoans to control cell number and eliminate cells that threaten the animal's survival | ||
Synonyms | caspase-mediated cell death, programmed cell death | ||
Broader (hypernym) | cell death, necrobiosis | ||