Definition
pentaploidy
noun
- The condition of having five complete sets of chromosomes in a cell or organism.
Usage: technical; biology; genetics
Examples
- Pentaploidy is rare in animals but occurs naturally in some plant species.
- The pentaploidy of certain wheat varieties makes them sterile or partially fertile.
- Researchers studied pentaploidy in the laboratory by inducing chromosome doubling.
- Some ferns exhibit pentaploidy as a result of polyploid evolution.
- Pentaploidy can arise from the fusion of unreduced gametes in plants.