Medical Dictionary
differentiation
noun dif·fer·en·ti·a·tion \-ˌren-chē-ˈā-shən\
Medical Definition of DIFFERENTIATION
1
a : the act of describing a thing by giving its differentia b : the enhancement of microscopically visible differences between tissue or cell parts by partial selective decolorization or removal of excess stain (as in regressive staining) c : the development of a discriminating conditioned response with a positive response to one stimulus and absence of the response on the application of similar but discriminably different stimuli
2
a : modification of different parts of the body for performance of particular functions; also : specialization of parts or organs in the course of evolution b : the sum of the developmental processes whereby apparently unspecialized cells, tissues, and structures attain their adult form and function—compare determination 2
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