complementation

[ kom-pluh-muhn-tey-shuhn ]

noun

1. complementary distribution.
2. Genetics. the occurrence of a wild-type phenotype when two closely related, interacting mutant genes are expressed in the same cell.
3. Grammar.
   1. complement ( def 6 ).
   2. the use of grammatical complements.
4. cooperation in lowering tariffs to permit the movement of components among different countries when it is more profitable for each country to produce parts of a product than the whole.

Word History and Origins

Origin of complementation¹

First recorded in 1935–40; complement + -ation

Example Sentences

The technique, called blastocyst complementation, is similar to a technique used to create mice with human immune systems, which have proven to be powerful research tools.

From Science Daily

More than two decades ago, the laboratory that performed the current study devised a technique called blastocyst complementation, to circumvent these limitations in the immune system3.

From Nature

J.K. completed the blastocyst complementation assays and the in uteri transfers.

From Nature

Genetic complementation reveals a novel human congenital disorder of glycosylation of type II, due to inactivation of the Golgi CMP-sialic acid transporter.

From Nature

This increased digestive capacity is mainly a result of the microbiota's complementation of the limited diversity of complex-carbohydrate-metabolizing enzymes that are encoded in the human genome.

From Nature