developmental biology

American  

noun

1. the branch of biology dealing with the processes of growth and change that transform an organism from a fertilized egg or asexual reproductive unit, as a spore or gemmule, to an adult.

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developmental biology Cultural  

1. The study of the processes by which an organism develops from a zygote to its full structure. This field includes the study of cellular differentiation as well as body structure development. (See also embryology.)

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Etymology

Origin of developmental biology

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

Understanding why aging so often goes hand in hand with disease is the central focus of the lab led by Kris Burkewitz, assistant professor of cell and developmental biology.

From Science Daily • Feb. 3, 2026

Other Northwestern authors include Dr. Mesulam and Changiz Geula, research professor of cell and developmental biology and neuroscience at Feinberg and a member of the Mesulam Center.

From Science Daily • Oct. 19, 2025

When cloning and stem cell technology arrived in the late 1990s, Martinez Arias immediately saw that these areas had the potential to address questions in developmental biology that had been previously unanswerable.

From Scientific American • Nov. 9, 2023

Scientists have been culturing animal cells in artificial environments since the 1950s, initially focusing on studying developmental biology and cancer.

From Salon • Jun. 28, 2023

If that seems surprising, it is perhaps because we have been so wedded to the blueprint picture of developmental biology.

From Scientific American • May 31, 2023