glomerulus

[ gloh-mer-yuh-luhs, gluh- ]

noun

, Anatomy.

, plural glo·mer·u·li [gloh-, mer, -y, uh, -lahy, gl, uh, -].

1. a compact cluster of capillaries.
2. Also called Malpighian tuft. a tuft of convoluted capillaries in the nephron of a kidney, functioning to remove certain substances from the blood before it flows into the convoluted tubule.

glomerulus

/ ɡlɒˈmɛrʊləs /

noun

1. a knot of blood vessels in the kidney projecting into the capsular end of a urine-secreting tubule
2. any cluster or coil of blood vessels, nerve fibres, etc, in the body

glomerulus

/ glō-mĕr′yə-ləs /

, Plural glomeruli glō-mĕr′yə-lī′

1. A knot of highly permeable capillaries located within the Bowman's capsule of a nephron. Waste products are filtered from the blood in the glomerulus, initiating the process of urine formation.

Derived Forms

• gloˈmerular, adjective

Other Words From

• glo·meru·lar adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of glomerulus¹

1855–60; < New Latin, equivalent to Latin glomer- (stem of glomus ) ball-shaped mass + -ulus -ule

Word History and Origins

Origin of glomerulus¹

C18: from New Latin, diminutive of glomus ball

Example Sentences

It shows how much blood the glomeruli -- small vessels in the kidney tissue -- can filter per unit of time.

From Science Daily

And each nephron contains a glomerulus, a tuft of tiny vessels that filters the blood as it passes through, and a tubule that sends cleansed blood and essential nutrients back into circulation.

From New York Times

Both conditions can damage the tiny, delicate blood vessels in the kidney's nearly 12 miles of glomeruli that filter waste from the blood.

From Salon

Both conditions can damage the tiny, delicate blood vessels in the kidney’s nearly 12 miles of glomeruli that filter waste from the blood.

From Scientific American

When stimulated by a chemical with a smell, or an odorant, they send nerve impulses to thousands of clusters of neurons in the glomeruli, which make up the olfactory bulb, the brain’s smell center.

From Scientific American