melanosome
noun
me·la·no·some
| \ mə-ˈla-nə-ˌsōm
, ˈme-lə-nə-\
, ˈme-lə-nə-\
Definition of melanosome
: a melanin-producing granule in a melanocyte
Examples of melanosome in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Babarović wondered: Was there a distinctive melanosome shape associated with non-iridescent blues? — Michael Greshko, National Geographic, "First blue feathers found on a fossilized bird," 25 June 2019 In animals, colors are determined by the shape of the melanosomes, as well as pigment. — Kristin Hugo, Newsweek, "Feathered Dinosaur Shimmered Like a Rainbow, Fossil Reveals," 15 Jan. 2018 As Laura Geggel writes for Live Science, the instrument revealed melanosomes, or microscopic structures that are responsible for pigmentation in modern bird feathers. — Mika Mckinnon, Smithsonian, "Newly Discovered Dino Had a Rainbow of Shiny Feathers," 16 Jan. 2018 Special cells in the skin contain pouches, called melanosomes, packed with pigment molecules. — Carl Zimmer, New York Times, "Genes for Skin Color Rebut Dated Notions of Race, Researchers Say," 12 Oct. 2017 This can be seen from the distribution in their fossils of pigment particles called melanosomes. — The Economist, "PalaeontologyOne species of dinosaur wore a bandit mask," 26 Oct. 2017 In 2010, researchers showed that those feathers still contained melanosomes, which give feathers their color. — Gretchen Vogel, Science | AAAS, "This dinosaur’s striking markings reveals where it lived," 26 Oct. 2017 These include heme proteins, melanosomes, lipofuscin, and other chemicals. — Beth Mole, Ars Technica, "Here’s what happens to your retina if you view an eclipse without protection," 18 Aug. 2017 The team couldn’t find any melanosomes in the new fossil, however, weakening the case for both camouflage and coloration, says Sandra Siljeström, an organic biochemist at the RISE institute in Boras, Sweden. — Giorgia Guglielmi, Science | AAAS, "Did this big dino use camouflage to hide from predators?," 3 Aug. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'melanosome.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for melanosome
melanosome
noun
me·la·no·some
| \ mə-ˈlan-ə-ˌsōm, ˈmel-ə-nō-
\
\
Medical Definition of melanosome
: a melanin-producing granule in a melanocyte