Definition
noun
(general) The ability or capacity to perform something.
(biology) The ability of a stem cell to differentiate into different cell types.
(pharmacology) The measure of the activity of a drug in a biological system.
Supplement
In biology, a cell may be totipotent, pluripotent, multipotent, or unipotent depending on its differentiation potential.
Word origin: Latin potentia, power, capacity.
Related form: potent (adjective).
Related terms:
- totipotency
- pluripotency
- multipotency
- unipotency
