filopodium
/ˌfʌɪlə(ʊ)ˈpəʊdɪəm
/noun (plural filopodia /ˌfʌɪlə(ʊ)ˈpəʊdɪəm/) Biology
A long, slender, tapering pseudopodium, as found in some protozoans and in embryonic cells.A few hours after it detached, the cell regenerated its filopodia and once again adhered to the matrix....
- These filopodia push into adjacent cells and are ingested by them.
- In some cells, filopodia are essential for navigation: when filopodia are suppressed, the nerve growth cones can advance but cannot navigate.
Derivatives
filopodial
- Other cells from the same population spread in a slower, anisotropic mode, exhibiting filopodial protrusions, greater membrane ruffling, edge retraction, and centripetal flow of actin filaments.
- When growth cones encounter guidance cues or asymmetric environments, signaling changes may also affect filopodial motility and distribution or microtubule engorgement to guide subsequent growth cone motility.
- Also, some observations indicate that the rate of filopodial elongation does not slow down with filopodial length as fast as predicted by our theory.
Origin
Early 20th century: from Latin filium 'thread' + podium.