n. 1. A form of reproduction in which an unfertilized egg develops into a new individual, occurring commonly among insects and certain other arthropods. 2. The artificial activation of an unfertilized usually mammalian egg, resulting in an embryolike cell cluster from which stem cells can be harvested. [New Latin : Greek parthenos, virgin + GENESIS.] par′the·no·ge·netic (-jə-nĕtĭk), par′the·no·genic (-jĕnĭk) adj. par′the·no·ge·neti·cal·ly adv. |
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