merocrine
|me-ro-crine|
/ˈmɛrəˌkraɪn/
secretion by exocytosis
Etymology
'merocrine' originates from New Latin/Greek components: Greek 'meros' meaning 'part' and Greek 'krinein' meaning 'to separate', combined in modern medical terminology.
'merocrine' was formed in modern medical/biological terminology from the Greek elements 'mero-' + '-crine' (New Latin/Modern Latin formation) and was adopted into English usage in late 19th to early 20th century to classify types of glandular secretion.
Initially built from elements meaning 'part' and 'to separate', the term came to be used specifically for the secretion mode characterized by exocytosis without cellular loss; its use narrowed to this physiological meaning.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
relating to or denoting a mode of secretion in which cells release their products by exocytosis without loss of cytoplasm or cell membrane (contrast with apocrine and holocrine).
Merocrine glands, such as eccrine sweat glands, release their secretions by exocytosis.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/12/10 05:23