noun
- A blood cell, especially a cell found in the blood of invertebrates such as insects and crustaceans.
Usage: technical; biology; also spelled hemocyte in U.S. English
Examples
- The haemocytes in insect blood serve immune functions similar to white blood cells in vertebrates.
- Researchers examined haemocytes under the microscope to study the immune response of the crustacean.
- Different types of haemocytes circulate through the hemolymph of arthropods.
- The haemocyte count increased significantly after the organism was exposed to a pathogen.