chromatin
noun
chro·ma·tin
| \ ˈkrō-mə-tən
\
\
Definition of chromatin
: a complex chiefly of DNA and histone in eukaryotic cells that is usually dispersed in the interphase nucleus and condensed into chromosomes in mitosis and meiosis and in which the nucleosome makes up its repeating subunits
In eukaryotes, the DNA interacts with the histone proteins to form a tightly packed superstructure known as chromatin.— Isao Tanaka et al.
— see cell illustration — compare euchromatin, heterochromatin, nucleosome
Keep scrolling for more
Other Words from chromatin
chromatinic
\ ˌkrō-mə-ˈti-nik
\
adjective
\
adjective
Examples of chromatin in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Amid all of this, the chromatin pinches off here and there into thousands of loops. — Quanta Magazine, "Genetic Geometry Takes Shape," 25 Feb. 2015 And a new company aims to target one aspect of epigenetics — chromatin winding — to try to treat first cancer, and then other disorders. — Elizabeth Cooney, STAT, "Startup unwinds the role of chromatin to target epigenetic changes in cancer," 20 Apr. 2018 That’s because the chemical elements in chromatin don’t contain many electrons. — Bradley J. Fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Salk Institute, UCSD scientists decode DNA's 3D shape," 27 July 2017 Between those boundary points, those clusters of insulating proteins, the chromatin strand can loop up and over like the ribbon in a birthday bow, allowing genetic elements distributed along the ribbon to touch and interact with one another. — Natalie Angier, New York Times, "A Family’s Shared Defect Sheds Light on the Human Genome," 9 Jan. 2017 This raises another question: what determines the chromatin code? — Brandon Keim, WIRED, "DNA Packaging Could Determine Cell Development," 2 July 2007These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chromatin.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for chromatin
chromatin
noun
chro·ma·tin
| \ ˈkrō-mət-ən
\
\
Medical Definition of chromatin
: a complex of a nucleic acid with basic proteins (as histone) in eukaryotic cells that is usually dispersed in the interphase nucleus and condensed into chromosomes in mitosis and meiosis
Other Words from chromatin
chromatinic
\ ˌkrō-mə-ˈtin-ik
\
adjective
\
adjective