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flagellar

flagellar

8.9
Relating to a long thin tail that cells use to move
  • adjective
  • /fləˈdʒɛlər/
  • Specialized
translation icon : flagelar
  • Shibata and Ueda (2008) used Shibata and Fujimoto's (2005) theory to explain the effect of CheR on flagellar motor rotation.
  • flagellar motor
  • flagellar motor rotation

And indeed, one of the things that that had been studied previously was the flagellar biosynthesis pathway.

Examples

  • The flagellar structure of the sperm cell allows it to swim towards the egg.

  • And indeed, one of the things that that had been studied previously was the flagellar biosynthesis pathway.

  • Although it is beneficial to the cells, rapid switching is also accompanied by chatter (i.e., rapid fluctuations in the rotation of the flagellar motors), especially in a noisy environment.

    Academic text (2012)
  • The robustness of chemotaxis to temporal changes was initially attributed to the flagellar motor's possessing a mechanism to prevent chatter (Morton-Firth and Bray 1998).

    Academic text (2012)
  • Researchers studied the flagellar movement of eels to understand their swimming efficiency.

  • Many bacteria use a flagellar system to propel themselves through liquid environments.

Synonyms

flagellated
vsflagellar
  • Specialized
8.6

Having one or more long thin tails that help the cell move

relates to or indicates presence rather than only stating possession
flagellate
vsflagellar
  • Specialized
9.9

Having whip-like tails used to move

relates to or indicates presence rather than mere resemblance

Surface Forms

flagellar positive

Morphology

flagellar = flagellum (transparent) = flagellum + ar

The adjective is formed from the noun 'flagellum' with the regular scientific adjective-forming suffix '-ar', so the meaning is directly related to the base term.

Etymology

The word flagellar comes from the Latin flagellum, which means 'whip', so imagine a tiny whip that a cell waves to swim. That's why flagellar describes a whip-like tail or structure that helps cells or tiny organisms move.