contact inhibition

noun

, Biology.

1. the cessation of movement, growth, and division in cells that touch each other.

Word History and Origins

Origin of contact inhibition¹

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

In a 2009 study1, they noted that a process in natural anticancer defences called contact inhibition, which prevents cells from dividing when they reach a certain density, occurs at a much lower cell density in naked mole rats.

From Nature

Cancer starts when mutated cells grow uncontrollably; by increasing contact inhibition, hyaluronic acid, which Gorbunova describes as “basically a gooey sugar,” probably keeps these tumor cells from replicating.

From Washington Post

The mechanism may involve contact inhibition, the tendency of cells to stop dividing when squeezed tightly by other cells.

From Washington Post

However, the contact inhibition they do show is not normal: instead of filling a culture dish and then holding steady, blind-mole-rat cells undergo mass cell death when they reach high densities7.

From Scientific American

This property, called contact inhibition, is absent in cancer cells.

From Scientific American