heterochrony

[het-uh-rok-ruh-nee]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Biology.

a genetic shift in timing of the development of a tissue or anatomical part, or in the onset of a physiological process, relative to an ancestor.

heterochrony

A change in the timing or duration of an organism's ontogenetic development compared with an ancestral species, resulting in morphological differences between ancestor and descendant.

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Other Word Forms

heterochronic adjective
heterochronistic adjective
heterochronous adjective

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Word History and Origins

Origin of heterochrony¹

1875–80; hetero- + chron- + -y ³; compare German Heterochron

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Complex heterochrony underlies the evolution of Caenorhabditis elegans hermaphrodite sex allocation.

From

The different ways some parts of us seem to accelerate and mature while others bide their time or halt altogether has generated a flock of terms related to neoteny—paedomorphosis, heterochrony, progenesis, hypermorphosis, and recapitulation.

From

Evolution of craniofacial novelty in parrots through developmental modularity and heterochrony.

From

Heterochrony: an irregular development in point of time, a later stage becoming evident before one that is earlier in ordinary course.

From

heterochromous heterochthonous

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