holocrine

English

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ὅλος (hólos, “whole, entire”) and κρῑ́νω (krī́nō, “to separate”).

Adjective

holocrine (not comparable)

1. (anatomy, biology, histology) Of or relating to a mode of secretion in some exocrine glands in which the plasma membrane ruptures, releasing the cell's cytoplasm into the lumen of the gland.
   • 2004, B. G. Kapoor, Bhavna Khanna, Ichthyology Handbook, page 80:

     The venom glands of teleosts consist of an aggregation of holocrine cells derived from the epidermis but often sunken into the dermis, on either side of a spine, usually of dorsal or pectoral fin.

   • 2007, Galina N. Solntseva, N. N. Dergunova (translator), Teresa Ott (linguistic editor), Morphology of the Auditory and Vestibular Organs in Mammals, with Emphasis on Marine Species, page 42,

     In Chiroptera and Insectivora, the holocrine glands can form glandular complexes.

   • 2013, Rowen D. Frandson, W. Lee Wilke, Anna Dee Fails, Anatomy and Physiology of Farm Animals, page 11:

     The holocrine gland is the least common type. After the cell fills with secretory material, the entire holocrine gland cell discharges to the lumen of the gland to constitute the secretion. Sebaceous glands associated with hair follicles of the skin are the most common holocrine glands.

Coordinate terms

• apocrine
• merocrine