Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Of or relating to a gland whose output consists of disintegrated secretory cells along with the secretory product itself.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective biology Of or relating to a mode of
secretion , inexocrine glands , where the secretion is produced in thecytoplasm of thecell andreleased by therupture of theplasma membrane , destroying the cell and resulting in the secretion of the product into thelumen .
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
[holo– + Greek krīnein, to separate; see endocrine.]
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Examples
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This holocrine produces sebum, an oil which conditions the hair and skin, and whose fatty acids restrict bacterial growth on the epidermis.
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