mitochondrion
noun
mi·to·chon·dri·on
| \ ˌmī-tə-ˈkän-drē-ən
\
\
plural mitochondria\ ˌmī-tə-ˈkän-drē-ə
\
\
Definition of mitochondrion
: any of various round or long cellular organelles of most eukaryotes that are found outside the nucleus, produce energy for the cell through cellular respiration, and are rich in fats, proteins, and enzymes — see cell illustration
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Other Words from mitochondrion
mitochondrial
\ ˌmī-tə-ˈkän-drē-əl
\
adjective
\
adjective
Examples of mitochondrion in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
After elongating in response to the nutrient deficiency, the mitochondria lose their cristae (the little folds on their inside) and ball up. — Jeffery Delviscio, Scientific American, "A Flash on Jupiter, the Death of Mitochondria and the World under Your Skin: The Week’s Best Science GIFs," 16 Aug. 2019 During some of the heated sessions, medical doctors and anti-aging researchers argued loudly across the conference room about biomarkers, enzymes, telomerase endings of genes, and how far mitochondria might be manipulated. — Zoltan Istvan, Quartz, "Rich people shouldn’t be the only ones who get to live forever," 29 July 2019 For decades, detectives used DNA from Y chromosomes and mitochondria to identify potential perpetrators, but both methods had limitations. — Allysia Finley, WSJ, "The Making of a DNA Detective," 15 Feb. 2019 The mitochondria were damaged — and nothing Dr. McCully tried revived them. — New York Times, "Dying Organs Restored to Life in Novel Experiments," 10 July 2018 Children inherit mitochondria only from their mothers; replacing faulty mitochondria in an egg or embryo with normal ones from a donor can result in healthy babies. — Sandy Ong, Science | AAAS, "Singapore could become the second country to legalize mitochondrial replacement therapy," 6 June 2018 Yet mitochondria never gave up their own form of heredity. — Carl Zimmer, STAT, "Shot through with microbes: How our bodies adapt to a hidden world of bacteria," 30 May 2018 Our mitochondria are like little bots converting fuel for exercise. — Marc Peruzzi, Outside Online, "In Praise of Dumb Gear," 17 Apr. 2018 In many species, including humans, mitochondria have their own DNA. — Ben Guarino, Washington Post, "4,000-year-old Egyptian mummies were thought to be brothers. Genetics tells a different story.," 19 Jan. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mitochondrion.' 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 mitochondrion
mitochondrion
noun
mi·to·chon·dri·on
| \ ˌmī-tə-ˈkän-drē-ən
\
\
plural mitochondria\ -drē-ə \
Kids Definition of mitochondrion
: one of the parts found in the cytoplasm of a cell outside the nucleus that provides the cell with energy released from the breakdown of nutrients
mitochondrion
noun
mi·to·chon·dri·on
| \ ˌmīt-ə-ˈkän-drē-ən
\
\
plural mitochondria\ -drē-ə
\
\
Medical Definition of mitochondrion
: any of various round or long cellular organelles of most eukaryotes that are found outside the nucleus, produce energy for the cell through cellular respiration, and are rich in fats, proteins, and enzymes
— called also chondriosome
Other Words from mitochondrion
mitochondrial
\ -drē-əl
\
adjective
\
adjective
mitochondrially
\ -ē
\
adverb
\
adverb