Definition

1. Noun (Biology, Embryology):
   • Morula: A solid ball of cells resulting from the division of a fertilized ovum (zygote), and constituting an early stage of embryonic development in animals. It is the stage that follows the cleavage of the zygote and precedes the formation of a blastocyst or blastula.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Phôi dâu là một giai đoạn phát triển quan trọng của phôi thai. (The morula is an important stage of embryonic development.)
  • Sau nhiều lần phân chia, hợp tử phát triển thành phôi dâu. (After several divisions, the zygote develops into a morula.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is highly specialized and used almost exclusively in scientific contexts such as embryology, reproductive medicine, and developmental biology.
• It describes a specific, transient morphological stage where the embryo consists of approximately 16 to 32 cells (blastomeres) that resemble a mulberry, which is the origin of the term.

Variants and Related Words

• Phôi (n): embryo.

  • Phôi thai người phát triển rất nhanh. (The human embryo develops very quickly.)

• Giai đoạn phôi dâu (n): the morula stage.

  • Giai đoạn phôi dâu xảy ra trước khi hình thành phôi nang. (The morula stage occurs before blastocyst formation.)

Synonyms

• Morula: The direct and primary English equivalent. There are no common synonyms outside this technical term.

Notes on Usage

• "Phôi dâu" is a compound noun. The word "phôi" means "embryo," and "dâu" in this context means "mulberry," describing the shape of the cell mass. It is a calque (loan translation) of the international scientific term "morula," which comes from the Latin word for mulberry.
• This term is not used in everyday conversation. It is specific to academic, medical, and scientific writing and discourse.